•£C  171921 


OTHER  BOOKS  BY  PROFESSOR  ROGERS 


THE  RELIGION  OF  BABYLONIA  AND  ASSYRIA 

CUNEIFORM  PARALLELS  TO  THE  OLD  TESTAMENT 

A  HISTORY  OF  BABYLONIA  AND  ASSYRIA 

THE  RECOVERY  OF  THE  ANCIENT  ORIENT 

GREAT  CHARACTERS  OF  THE  OLD  TESTAMENT 


A  BOOK  OF 

OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

For  Public  Reading  in  Churches 


A  LECTIONARY 


Edited  '•• 


With  Introduction  and  Notes  ^<i^l^f-_^ 

By       . 
ROBERT  WILLIAM  ROGERS 


Ph.D.  (Leipzig),  S.T.D.,  LL.D. 

Hon.  Litt.D.,  University  of  Dublin 

Professor  in  Drew  Theological  Seminary 


VOLUME  II 
INTRODUCTION  AND  NOTES 


THE  ABINGDON  PRESS 

NEW  YORK  CINCINNATI 


Copyright,  1921,  by 
ROBERT  WILLIAM  ROGERS 


Printed  in  the  United  States  of  America 


CONTENTS 


PAGE 

Preface 7 

Introduction 13 

I.  First  Sunday  in  Advent.     Jeremiah  31.  10-14,  27-34.  37 

II.  Second  Sunday  in  Advent.     Micah  4.  1-7;  5.  2-4.  .  .  39 

III.  Third  Sunday  IX  Advent.     Isaiah  40.   1-17,  27-30..  41 

IV.  Fourth  Sunday  in  Advent.    Isaiah  10.  33 — 11.  9  and 

12.  1-6 43 

V.  Christmas  Day.     Isaiah  7.  10-14;  9.  2-7 46 

VI.  First  Sunday  After  Christmas.    Isaiah  32.  1-5;  35. 

1-10 49 

VII.  Second  Sunday  After  Christmas.    Isaiah  42.  1-16.  51 

VIII.  First  Sunday  After  Epiphany.     Isaiah  44.  6-23 ...  53 

IX.  Second  Sunday  After  Epiphany.     Isaiah  55.  1-13.  55 

X.  Third  Sunday  After  Epiphany.     Hosea  11.1 — 12.  6  57 

XI.  Fourth  Sunday  After  Epiphany.     Amos  8 59 

XII.  Fifth  Sunday  After  Epiphany.     Ezekiel  33.  1-20 .  .  62 

XIII.  Sixth  Sunday  After  Epiphany.     Ezekiel  34.  1-16, 

25-31 64 

XIV.  Septuagesima  Sunday.    Genesis  1.  1 — 2.  3 66 

XV.  Sexagesima  Sunday.     Genesis  3 68 

XVI.  QuiNQUAGESiMA  SuNDAY.     Genesis  6.  5-8,   13-22;  7. 

23,  24;  9.  8-17 71 

XVII.  First  Sunday  in  Lent.     Jeremiah  8.  4-22;  9.  1 73 

XVIII.  Second  Sunday  in  Lent,     Genesis  22.  1-19 75 

XIX.  Third  Sunday  in  Lent.     Genesis  37.  3-12,  17-35 ...  77 

XX.  Fourth  Sunday  in  Lent.     Exodus  3.  1-15 79 

XXI.  Fifth  Sunday  in  Lent.     Exodus  33.  7-23 82 

XXII.  Palm  Sunday.     Zechariah  8.  14-23;  9.  9,  10 84 

XXIII.  Good  Friday.     Isaiah  52.  13—53.  12 86 

XXIV.  Easter  Day.     Exodus  12.  1-14 89 

XXV.  First  Sunday  After  Easter.     Isaiah  52.  1-12 91 

XXVI.  Second  Sunday  After  Easter.     Exodus  16.  2-15.  .  93 

XXVII.  Third  Sunday  After  Easter.    Deuteronomy  4.  1-20.  95 
XXVIII.  Fourth    Sunday  After    Easter.     Deuteronomy  6. 

4-25 97 

XXIX.  Fifth  Sunday  After  Easter.     Deuteronomy  8.  2-20.  99 

XXX.  Sunday  After  Ascension  Day.     Deuteronomy  30..  101 

XXXI.  Whitsunday.     Joel  2.  21-32 103 

XXXII.  Trinity  Sunday.     Isaiah  6.  1-13 105 

XXXIII.  First  Sunday  After  Trinity,     Joshua  1.  1-17 107 

XXXIV.  Second  Sunday  After  Trinity,     Judges  4.  1-16,  23.  109 
XXXV.  Third   Sunday   After    Trinity,     1   Samuel   1.    1-5, 

9-28 112 

XXXVI.  Fourth  Sunday  After  Trinity.     1  Samuel  3.  1—4.  1,  114 
XXXVII,  Fifth  Sunday   After  Trinity.     1   Samuel  17.   1-4, 

8-11,  32-37,  40-54 115 

XXXVIII,  Sixth  Sunday  After  Trinity,     2  Samuel  12.  1-23.  .  117 
XXXIX.  Seventh  Sunday  After  Trinity.     2  Samuel  18.  1-15, 

24-33 119 

XL.  Eighth   Sunday   After  Trinity.     1    Chronicles  29. 

1-20 121 


CONTENTS 


XLI.  Ninth  Sunday  After  Trinity.     1  Kings  3.  4-15  ....  123 
XLII.  Tenth  Sunday  After  Trinity.     1   Kings  6.   1,  38; 

8.  12,  13,  22,  23,  27-40,  54-58 125 

XLIII.  Eleventh  Sunday  After  Trinity.     1  Kings  10.  1-13.  128 

XLIV.  Twelfth  Sunday  After  Trinity.     1  Kings  12 130 

XLV.  Thirteenth  Sunday  x\fter  Trinity.     1  Kings  17.  . .  132 
XL VI.  Fourteenth  Sunday  After  Trinity.     1  Kings  18.  1, 

2,  17-39 134 

XL VII.  Fifteenth  Sunday  After  Trinity.     1  Kings  19.  .  .  .  136 

XLVIII.  Sixteenth  Sunday  After  Trinity.     2  Kings  5.  1-19.  139 
XLIX.  Seventeenth  Sunday  After  Trinity.     2  Kings  6. 

8-23 141 

L.  Eighteenth  Sunday  After  Trinity.     2  Kings  22. 

3-20 142 

LI.  Nineteenth  Sunday  After  Trinity.     Jeremiah  5. 

1-6,  15-29 144 

LII.  Twentieth    Sunday    After    Trinity.     Jeremiah    7. 

1-15  and  26.  7-16 146 

LIII.  Twenty-first  Sunday  After  Trinity.     Daniel  5 .  .  .  148 
LIV.  Twenty-second  Sunday  After  Trinity.     Proverbs 

3.  1-20 151 

LV.  Twenty-third  Sunday  After  Trinity.     Proverbs  8. 

1-21 153 

LVI.  Twenty-fourth  Sunday  After  Trinity.     Proverbs 

31.  10-31 155 

LVII.  Twenty-fifth  Sunday  After  Trinity.     Job  5.  6-26.  157 

LVIII.  Twenty-sixth  Sunday  After  Trinity.     Job  28 ... .  159 
LIX.  Sunday  Next  Before  Advent.     Ecclesiastes  11.  1-4, 

6-10;  12.  8,  13,  14 161 

ALTERNATIVE  LESSONS 

PAGE 

I.  First  Sunday  in  Advent.     Isaiah  1.  1-20 167 

II.  Second  Sunday  in  Advent.     Isaiah  5.  1-20 169 

III.  Third  Sunday  in  Advent.     Isaiah  25.  1-9 171 

IV.  Fourth  Sunday  in  Advent.     Zechariah  2 173 

VIII.  First  Sunday  After  Epiphany.     Isaiah  51.  1-16..  .  175 

X.  Third  Sunday  After  Epiphany.     Hosea  14.  1-9..  . .  177 

XIII.  Sixth  Sunday  After  Epiphany.     Micah  6.  1-8 179 

XVII.  First  Sunday  in  Lent.     Genesis  18 181 

XXIV.  Easter  Day.     Ezekiel  37.  1-14 184 

XXVII.  Third  Sunday  After  Easter.     Isaiah  60 186 

XXXI.  Whitsunday.     Exodus  34.  1-10,  29-35 188 

XLIV.  Twelfth    Sunday    After    Trinity.     Habakkuk    2. 

1-14 190 

XL VI.  Fourteenth  Sunday  After  Trinity.     Amos  5.  4-24.  193 
L.  Eighteenth     Sunday     After    Trinity.     Jonah    3. 

1—4.  11 195 

LIII.  Twenty-first  Sunday  After  Trinity.     Ezekiel  14.  198 
LIV.  Twenty-second  Sunday  After  Trinity.     Nehemiah 

8.  1-12 200 

LVI.  Twenty-fourth  Sunday  After  Trinity.     Haggai  2. 

1-9 202 


PREFACE 

The  public  reading  of  the  Holy  Scriptures  has  fallen 
upon  very  sad  days,  in  respect  of  the  Old  Testament,  in 
all  churches  which  have  no  lectionary  established  and 
commanded.  The  duties  of  a  professorship,  rather  than 
the  care  of  a  church,  have  for  a  third  of  a  century  carried 
me  on  various  errands  of  preaching,  lecturing,  attendance 
upon  committees  or  conventions  into  many  Baptist,  Con- 
gregational, Methodist  and  Presbyterian  churches.  In 
them  all  I  have  seldom  found  provision  made  for  anything 
like  a  regular  reading  of  two  lessons,  one  from  the  Old 
and  the  other  from  the  New  Testament.  In  many  a  selec- 
tion of  the  Psalter  is  read  responsively,  and  then  the  New 
Testament  lesson,  while  the  Law,  the  Prophets  and  the 
Wise  Men  bring  no  word  to  common  worship  and  instruc- 
tion. If  the  preacher  intends  to  preach  from  an  Old  Testa- 
ment text,  he  may  read  the  passage,  or  one  related  to  it; 
or  if  his  text  be  from  the  New  Testament,  he  may  make 
use  of  some  Old  Testament  lesson  which  points  toward 
it  or  gives  it  some  light  or  contrast.  Apart  from  these  or 
other  more  or  less  related  instances  the  reading  of  the  Old 
Testament  in  the  ears  of  a  worshiping  congregation  has 
disappeared  from  among  us,  but  for  the  few,  here  or  there, 
who  love  it  and  are  deeply  conscious  that  it  has  a  living 
message  for  to-day. 

Wherever  and  whenever  the  Old  Testament  is  read  at 
all  the  selection  from  it  tends  strongly,  among  these  great 
and  powerful  churches,  toward  the  repetition  of  a  few 
favorite  passages  which  run  in  a  little  round  and  very 
largely  in  Isaiah.  Beyond  this  the  great  deeps  of  the 
divine  story,  or  address  of  God  to  the  souls  of  men,  lie  un- 
explored, or  but  lightly  traversed.     So  much  is  this  true  in 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 


my  experience  that  I  used  to  say  at  times  in  my  Old  Testa- 
ment lecture  room  that  I  had  never  heard  a  passage  from 
Jeremiah  read  in  the  public  congregation.  Then  one  day 
one  of  my  own  students,  preaching  in  the  chapel,  read 
from  the  greatest  of  the  prophets,  having  quietly  remarked 
to  his  fellows  in  advance  that  I  should  never  be  able  to 
say  that  again!  The  sense  of  humor  has  happily  not  de- 
parted from  theological  students! 

As  the  years  went  forward  I  found  myself  more  and 
more  lamenting  the  neglect  of  the  Old  Testament,  and  as 
far  as  my  feeble  voice  could  reach  urging  young  men  enter- 
ing the  ministry  to  find  some  way,  each  for  himself,  to 
better  the  condition,  to  make  the  prophets,  at  least,  vocal 
once  more.  Perhaps  it  helped.  I  do  not  know.  But  I 
kept  turning  it  over  in  my  mind  seeking  some  way  of  en- 
couragement and  help  until  in  1912  I  began  to  make  a 
little  Old  Testament  lectionary,  and  only  now  is  it  finished 
and  very  humbly  and  earnestly  and  imploringly  offered 
for  any  use  little  or  much  that  few  or  many  may  find  for  it. 

In  the  Introduction  I  have  written  a  little  sketch  of 
the  story  of  the  rise  and  development  of  lectionaries;  I 
would  it  might  be  read,  for  it  should  suggest  that  we 
have  made  far  less  use  of  the  Old  Testament  in  these 
days  than  our  fathers,  whether  spiritually  ours  in  Judaism 
or  more  closely  ours  in  Protestantism.  I  could  not  look 
forward  very  hopefully  toward  the  adoption  of  any  scheme 
of  lessons  for  twice  on  Sunday,  nor  for  lessons  that  were 
very  long.  I  have  therefore  made  lessons  for  but  one  service, 
but  with  a  goodly  selection  beyond  the  ordinary  year  and 
alternatives  from  which  an  evening  lesson  might  be  drawn 
when  occasion  served.  The  lessons  are  arranged  according 
to  the  Church  Year,  but  there  is  no  special  need  so  to  use 
them  unless  one  wills.  Very  few  are  so  closely  attached 
to  any  church  season  that  they  might  not  be  quite  appro- 
priately read  at  any  other  season.     If  one  would  follow 


PREFACE 


closely  or  slightly  the  Church  Year,  the  calendar  will  make 
it  easy  to  find  the  day;  if  not,  the  lessons  are  numbered 
simply,  and  the  index  will  make  it  easy  to  find  any  one. 

The  choice  of  these  lessons  has  been  spread  over  years. 
Some  come  from  the  old  Church  of  England  lessons,  others 
from  the  new  plan  of  the  same  church,  to  which  allusion 
is  made  in  the  Introduction.  Some  come  from  John  Wesley's 
selection,  others  from  the  lectionaries  of  the  churches  of 
Lutheranism  both  European  and  American;  still  others 
have  been  suggested  by  selections  made  for  literary  quality 
such  as  the  beautiful  one  by  Sir  James  George  Frazer,^ 
and  perhaps  a  very  few  are  personal.  The  list  has  suffered 
many  revisions,  passages  have  gone  in  and  been  taken  out, 
some  have  been  shortened  and  others  lengthened.  The 
order  has  been  bettered,  and,  alas!  perhaps  worsened, 
while  the  list  has  lain  for  weeks  or  months  before  another 
revision;  but  enthusiasm  and  interest  never  died  out. 

The  text  chosen  is  in  the  most  part  simply  the  Revised 
Version,  not  the  American  Standard.  It  has  been  care- 
fully compared  with  the  Hebrew  Text  and  then  treated  con- 
servatively and  tenderly  but  with  the  eye  ever  fixed  on  its 
purpose.  It  is  not  for  the  study,  but  for  public  oral  read- 
ing. It  ought  not  to  have  a  strange,  but  a  familiar  sound, 
yet,  if  possible,  it  should  convey  meaning  to  the  ear,  not 
merely  to  the  eye.  Therefore,  when  sense  demanded  and 
Hebrew  permitted  or  required,  I  have  changed  a  word  or 
altered  a  phrase;  or  when  the  Septuagint  offered  what  seemed 
a  better  sense,  it  has  occasionally  been  followed,  and  in  a 
very  few  cases  even  a  conjectural  emendation  adopted. 
I  hope  this  has  all  been  done  discreetly;  it  has  surely  been 
done  cautiously  and  advisedly.  Let  him  who  likes  it  not 
change  it  with  his  pen  before  he  reads. 

If  these  lessons  are  to  be  of  real  use  and  value  to  God's 


^  Paasages  from  the  Bible  Chosen  for  Their  Literary  Beauty  and  Interest.     1895. 
2nd  Ed.,  1909. 


10  OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 


people,  they  must  be  taken  seriously  and  used  after  every 
effort  has  been  made  to  make  intelligent  practice  of  them. 
No  man  will  move  a  congregation  to  interest  or  give  it 
real  instruction  who  is  not  instructed  and  interested  him- 
self. If  it  be  well  worth  while  to  preach  the  word  after 
all  possible  preparation,  it  is  siu*ely  well  worth  while  to  read 
with  understanding  from  the  Holy  Scriptures.  As  a  slight 
help  I  have  been  so  bold  as  to  write  a  few  words  of  intro- 
duction and  annotation  for  each  lesson.  They  are  offered 
very  modestly  and  with  much  hesitation.  They  make  not 
the  slightest  pretension  of  forming  a  Conunentary,  and 
there  are  no  earthquaking  discoveries  in  them.  They  may 
be  too  slight  to  be  of  use — ^then  pass  them  by  and  take 
time  and  pains  to  consult  the  great  commentaries.  They 
may  contain  suggestions  as  to  date,  authorship,  or  meaning 
contrary  to  your  views,  dear  Reader — then  leave  them 
coldly  alone  and  betake  you  to  the  text  itself.  Do  not 
permit  them  to  spoil  your  hope  of  instructing  the  people 
out  of  God's  Word  simply  because  man's  comment  has 
seemed  unwise,  ill  advised,  unnecessary,  or  even  foolish. 
But  in  your  own  way  and  after  your  own  general  view  of 
the  Scriptures  as  a  whole  make  yourself  familiar  with  the 
lesson  you  are  to  read  and  then  read  it  as  though  you  thought 
it  was  really  a  message  from  God  through  his  servants 
or  an  account  of  his  dealing  with  them.  Read  weightily, 
earnestly,  at  times  with  deep  solemnity  and  God's  people 
will  listen.  How  should  one  expect  them  to  listen  or  to 
care  if  the  Bible  be  read,  as  I  have  sometimes  heard  it,  as 
though  preacher  or  pastor  cared  nothing  for  it,  and  would 
hasten  swiftly  over  it? 

Should  you  sometimes  pause  in  the  reading  to  give  an 
explanation  or  a  word  of  exposition  and  enforcement?  I 
dare  not  answer  that  with  any  assurance.  I  have  heard 
Spurgeon  do  it  with  telling  effect,  with  perfect  taste  and 
quite  evidently  with  profit.     But  it  was  not  done  by  chance 


PREFACE  11 


or  in  a  passing  whim.  He  had  thought  it  out  in  advance, 
and  the  congregation  was  prepared  and  expectant.  It 
was  indeed  a  wonderful  sight  to  see  six  thousand  people 
open  their  Bibles  when  the  moment  for  reading  had  come, 
and  then  find  the  place  when  he  had  announced  the  passage 
to  be  read.  He  waited  until  the  whisper  of  swiftly  turned 
pages  had  ceased,  and  then  read  and  paused  over  a  difficult 
phrase  and  spoke  when  he  thought  it  was  needed.  It  was 
wonderfully  done.  But  he  was  a  consummate  master  of 
the  art.  If  it  be  not  very  well  done,  perhaps  'twere  better 
left  undone. 

How  should  the  lesson  be  introduced.?  This  also  must 
have  a  very  doubtful  answer.  The  committee  which  car- 
ried out  a  Revision  of  the  Lectionary  of  the  Church  of 
England  has  a  word  in  its  report  about  this,  which  runs 
thus:  "We  are  of  opinion  that  the  reading  of  Lessons  in 
church  would  become  more  generally  instructive  if  they 
were  prefaced  by  a  brief  Introduction;  and  that  an  Author- 
ized Book  of  such  Introductions  might  advantageously  be 
issued."  This  has  not  yet  been  done,  but  I  should  like  to 
venture  a  suggestion  to  the  Reader  that  he  sometimes  try 
to  give  a  few  words  to  an  effort  to  prepare  the  people's 
minds  for  the  lesson  which  is  to  follow.  But,  again,  it 
were  better  left  undone  than  done  without  thought  and 
care.  Let  us  do  honor  to  the  Scriptures  by  the  word  with 
which  we  introduce  them,  not  dishonor  them  with  some 
lightly  tossed  word,  cheaply  bought,  pointless  and  without 
weight.  Yet  it  were  easier  to  omit  than  to  make  wise 
comment  before  or  during  the  reading  and  somebody  should 
be  wisely  daring  and  try  it. 

Finally,  O  thou  that  shall  read  to  God's  people  out  of 
Holy  Writ,  dost  thou  miss  here  some  great  passage?  I 
should  not  wonder  at  that.  Never  mind.  Use  your  lib- 
erty which  this  book  is  not  intended  to  abridge  and  read 
what  you  will.     I  have  meant  only  to  help,  but  I  plead 


12  OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

in  extenuation  of  faults  and  omissions  that  I  have  not 
been  hasty,  for  eight  years  have  passed  since  the  book  was 
begun,  and  much  thought  and  time  and  care,  aye,  and  labor 
also  have  gone  into  it.  May  God  bless  the  effort  and  the 
result  to  the  good  of  Christ's  Church. 

Robert  W.  Rogers. 
The  Bodleian  Library, 
Oxford, 
October  25,  1920. 


INTRODUCTION 

The  practice  of  reading  a  portion  of  Holy  Scripture  as 
a  part  of  divine  service  in  the  Christian  Church  derives 
from  the  synagogue  of  the  Jews.  Much  in  the  early  wor- 
ship of  Christians,  in  the  ordering  of  services  and  in  the 
building  of  churches  comes  from  the  same  source,  but 
nothing  taken  by  Christianity  from  Judaism  was  so  important 
in  itself  and  so  far  reaching  in  its  influence  as  this.  It  has 
been  most  justly  said  that  "the  custom  of  reading  portions 
of  the  Pentateuch  at  the  synagogue  on  Sabbath  and  holy 
days  and  at  other  stated  times  of  the  year,  [was]  an  insti- 
tution which  made  Judaism  one  of  the  most  powerful  fac- 
tors of  instruction  and  education  of  the  world.  Through  it 
the  Torah  became  the  property  of  the  whole  people  of 
Israel;  and  through  it  also  the  Gentiles  were  won  for 
Judaism;  even  the  rise  of  Christianity  and  Islam  was 
made  possible  chiefly  through  the  customary  reading 
from  the  Law  and  the  Prophets."^  The  meaning  of 
this  is  that  the  early  Christians  who  came  out  of  the 
synagogue  into  the  fellowship  of  Christ  came  instructed 
in  the  Law  and  with  ears  attuned  to  the  preaching  of  the 
prophets,  and  their  Christian  teachers,  who  declared  that 
Christ  was  the  fulfillment  of  the  law  and  the  Messiah  of 
the  prophets,  were  speaking  to  men  who  had  heard  the 
very  words  of  the  Law  and  the  predictions  of  the  prophets 
read  in  their  hearing  and  had  carried  away  in  mind  and  heart 
many  a  phrase  which  made  music  in  their  ears  as  their 
teachers  declared  that  it  was  of  Jesus  that  the  prophet  spake, 
that  it  was  toward  him  that  the  law  was  a  schoolmaster. 

How  early  the  public  reading  of  the  Old  Testament 
began  in  Judaism  is  unknown.     Josephus  quite  character- 

^Kohler,  Kaufmann,  Reading  from  the  Law.     Jewish  Encyclopedia,  vii,  647. 

13 


14 OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

istically  ascribes  it  to  Moses  himself,  saying,  "The  lawgiver 
showed  the  Law  to  be  the  best  and  the  most  necessary 
means  of  instruction  by  enjoining  the  people  to  assemble 
not  once  or  twice  or  frequently,  but  every  week  while  ab- 
staining from  all  other  work  in  order  to  hear  the  Law  and 
learn  it  in  a  thorough  manner — a  thing  which  all  other 
lawgivers  seem  to  have  neglected."^  In  this  he  was  prob- 
ably relying  upon  a  biblical  allusion  which  does  not  support 
his  sweeping  statement,  yet  has  an  interest  of  its  own, 
*'And  Moses  commanded  them,  saying,  At  the  end  of 
every  seven  years,  in  the  set  time  of  the  year  of  release, 
in  the  feast  of  tabernacles,  when  all  Israel  is  come  to  appear 
before  the  Lord  thy  God  in  the  place  which  he  shall  choose, 
thou  shalt  read  this  law  before  all  Israel  in  their  hearing" 
(Deut.  31.  10,  11).  This  passage  shows  that  by  the  time 
of  Josiah  (B.  C.  621),  and  perhaps  as  early  as  Hezekiah 
(circa  B.  C.  700)  it  had  become  a  practice  among  the  Jews 
to  read  publicly  certain  writings  counted  as  of  value  for 
religious  instruction.  What  these  were  no  one  knows, 
and  it  is  hazardous  to  speculate.  We  are  upon  safer  ground 
when  we  come  down  to  the  period  of  Ezra-Nehemiah,  when 
Ezra  brought  from  Babylon  a  roll  of  the  Law  and  caused 
it  to  be  read  publicly  in  the  people's  hearing  (Neh.  8.  1-18). 
This  was  but  a  single  reading,  not  likely  to  have  been  re- 
peated soon,  nor  have  we  the  slightest  clue  as  to  when  the 
custom  of  regular  reading  may  have  been  introduced,  nor 
where,  nor  by  whom.  Where  fact  is  wanting  conjecture 
has  been  frequent  and  enthusiastic,  and  it  has  been  as- 
sumed, again  on  the  basis  of  Deuteronomy  (31.  10),  that  a 
seven-year  cycle  of  readings  was  devised,  and  that  from 
this  two  three-and-a-half-year  cycles  of  readings  were  de- 
vised. There  would  appear  to  be  no  sound  reason  for  this 
supposition,  and  the  earliest  known  system  divided  the 
Pentateuch   into   one   hundred   and   fifty-five   sections   by 

*  Contra  Apionem,  ii,  17. 


INTRODUCTION  15 


which  the  Law  was  read  through  in  three  years.  This 
was  the  Palestinian  system  and  prevailed,  apparently,  until 
the  thirteenth  Christian  century.  This  was  succeeded  by 
the  division,  now  generally  considered  to  be  the  normal 
standard,  by  which  the  Pentateuch  is  divided  into  fifty- 
three  or  fifty-four  sections,  by  which  the  Law  was  read 
through  in  one  year.  By  the  Sephardim,  or  Jews  of  Spain 
and  of  the  western  countries  generally,  these  sections  of 
the  Law  are  called  Parashah  (plural,  Parashiyyoth),  while 
the  Ashkenazim,  or  Jews  of  Germany  call  each  section  a 
Sidra  (plural,  Sidroth)  and  give  the  name  "Parashah"  to 
the  smaller  portions  read  on  festivals,  or  to  one  of  the  seven 
subsections  of  the  Sabbath-morning  lesson.  These  sections, 
thus  appointed  would  seem  very  long  to  Christian  congre- 
gations. Thus,  for  example,  the  whole  book  of  Genesis 
is  read  in  twelve  Sabbaths,  as  follows:  I.  Gen.  1.  1 — 6.  8; 
11.  Gen.  6.  9—11.  32;  III.  Gen.  12.  1—17.  27;  IV.  Gen. 
18.  1—22.  24;  V.  Gen.  23.  1—25.  18;  VI.  Gen.  25.  19—28.  9; 
VII.  Gen.  28.  10—32.  3;  VIII.  Gen.  32.  4—36.  43;  IX. 
Gen.  37.  1—40.  23;  X.  Gen.  41.  1—44.  17;  XL  Gen.  44. 
18—47.  27;  XII.  Gen.  47.  28—50.  26.  This  may  serve  as 
an  example  of  the  high  importance  attached  by  the  Jewish 
Church  to  the  Law  and  indicate  the  passionate  desire  to 
educate  her  people  in  the  sacred  law.  To  accomplish  the 
reading  of  such  long  passages  it  was  necessary  to  give  a 
large  part  of  the  service  to  this  one  exercise,  and  in  order 
that  the  reading  might  never  take  place  with  a  wearied 
voice  it  became  customary  to  divide  each  of  these  long 
passages  into  seven  sections,  each  to  be  read  by  one  person. 
The  persons  thus  called  to  read  were  the  seven  elders  who 
sat  upon  the  platform.  Besides  the  Sabbath  reading 
chapters  were  selected  for  reading  upon  the  various  fast 
and  feast  days,  as,  for  example : 

Passover:  first  day,  Exod.  12.  21-51; 
second  day.  Lev.  23.  1-44; 


16  OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 


Passover:  third  day  (half  holy  day),  Exod.  13.  1-16; 

fourth  day,  Exod.  22.  24—23.  19; 

fifth  day,  Exod.  34.  1-26; 

sixth  day.  Num.  9.  1-14; 

seventh  day  (holy  day),  Exod.  13.  17—15.  27; 

eighth  day,  Deut.  15.  19—16.  17. 
The  Law  was  read  always  from  a  parchment  roll,  written 
by  hand  upon  calfskin  or  sheepskin  with  an  ink  most  care- 
fully and  skillfully  made  from  lampblack.  The  text  was 
Hebrew,  without  vowel  points,  accents,  or  any  verse  di- 
visions, but  with  the  Parashah  (or  Sidra)  divisions  marked 
either  by  a  new  line,  or  by  a  space  left  blank  in  a  line.  This 
roll  or  scroll  was  mounted  upon  rollers,  then  wrapped  in 
a  white  band  and  richly  encased  in  a  silk  or  velvet  robe. 
The  rollers  had  usually  tips  elaborately  ornamented  with 
silver.  Three  or  more  such  rolls  were  in  the  possession  of 
every  synagogue,  and  at  the  eastern  end  of  the  edifice 
there  was  a  cabinet  in  a  recess  in  which  the  rolls  were  kept. 
This  was  called  the  Hekal  (Temple)  or  Kodesh  (sanctuary) 
and  before  it  was  suspended  the  Ner  Tamid,  a  lamp  kept 
perpetually  lighted.  To  give  yet  greater  honor  to  the  Law, 
the  sanctuary  was  opened  with  much  ceremony,  both 
solemn  and  fitting.  When  that  point  in  the  service  is 
reached  the  Minister  announces  the  names  of  those  who 
are  to  have  the  honor  of  bringing  the  Roll  of  the  Law  from 
the  Hekal  or  "Ark,"  whom  he  precedes  thither,  and  the 
congregation  rises  as  he  says:  "Let  thy  priests  be  clothed 
with  righteousness,  and  thy  pious  ones  shout  for  joy.  For 
thy  servant  David's  sake,  turn  not  away  the  face  of  thine 
anointed.'*  As  the  doors  of  the  Ark  are  opened,  the  min- 
ister chants:  "O  magnify  the  Lord  with  me,  and  let  us 
together  exalt  his  name."  As  the  sacred  roll  is  borne  to 
the  reading  desk  the  congregation,  still  standing,  repeats 
a  declaration  of  faith  and  joy  beginning,  "Exalt  ye  the 
Lord  our  God,  and  worship  at  his  footstool,  for  he  is  holy" 


INTRODUCTION  17 


and  continuing:  "The  Law  which  Moses  commanded  us, 
is  the  inheritance  of  the  congregation  of  Jacob.  It  is  a 
tree  of  life  to  those  who  lay  hold  of  it;  and  the  supporters 
thereof  are  happy.  Its  ways  are  pleasant  ways  and  all 
its  paths  are  peace.  Abundant  peace  have  they  who  love 
thy  Law:  and  none  shall  obstruct  them.  The  Lord  will 
give  strength  unto  his  people:  the  Lord  will  bless  his  people 
with  peace."  Then  when  the  Law  has  been  divested  of 
its  coverings,  it  is  elevated  by  one  of  the  bearers,  who  turns 
it  to  the  four  sides  from  right  to  left,  pausing  at  each,  so 
that  all  the  congregation  may  see  the  writing,  whereupon 
they  say:  "And  this  is  the  Law  which  Moses  set  before 
the  children  of  Israel.  The  Law  which  Moses  commanded 
us  is  the  inheritance  of  the  congregation  of  Jacob."  "The 
way  of  God  is  perfect:  the  word  of  the  Lord  is  tried:  he  is 
a  shield  to  all  those  who  trust  in  him."^ 

After  all  this  the  readers  read  the  lesson  of  the  day.  How 
wonderful  is  the  care  of  modern  Judaism  to  honor  the  Law, 
how  anxious  that  all  who  attend  the  Sabbath  service  should 
be  made  to  feel  that  the  word  of  God  is  central  and  para- 
mount. Who  shall  say  that  the  continuance  of  Jewish 
faith,  amid  many  temptations  to  forsake  or  forget  or  even 
to  pass  to  Christianity  is  not  largely  due  to  this  honoring 
of  the  Book,  this  serious  effort  to  make  every  one  attend 
to  its  reading  and  to  learn  to  honor  it  himself  f 

Splendid  and  wise  and  good  as  all  this  was  in  itself  and 
for  its  purposes,  there  still  remained  a  great  gap  in  the  public 
instruction  of  the  people,  and  that  was  the  absence  of  the 
prophetical  Scriptures,  without  which  no  fully  rounded 
view  of  the  faith  of  Israel  could  possibly  be  presented. 
To  meet  this  need  a  scheme  for  the  reading  of  selections 
from   the   Prophets   appeared   in   the   synagogues,   but   at 


'  The  liturgical  forms  here  quoted  are  taken  from  "The  Book  of  Prayer  and  Order 
of  Service,  according  to  the  custom  of  Spanish  and  Portuguese  Jews,"  edited  and 
revised  by  Moses  Gaster.     Oxford,  5661-1901;  Vol.  i,  pp.  110,  111. 


18 OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

what  period  it  is  no  longer  possible  to  learn.  It  has  been 
suggested  that  it  originated  in  the  time  of  Antiochus  IV, 
Epiphanes,  whose  persecution  of  the  Jews  (B.  C.  168-165) 
was  supposed  to  have  led  to  the  reading  of  the  Prophets 
when  he  forbade  the  reading  of  the  Law,  but  there  is  not 
a  scintilla  of  evidence  to  support  the  suggestion.  It  seems, 
however,  reasonably  certain  that  the  Prophets  were  read 
before  the  Christian  era,  though  the  order  and  form  may 
not  have  been  quite  definitely  fixed  at  so  early  a  date. 

The  portion  from  the  Prophets  which  was  read  on  the 
Sabbath  after  the  reading  of  the  Law  is  called  Haphtarah 
(conclusion),  the  plural  of  which  is  Haphtaroth.  The 
selection  of  appropriate  passages  was  diflScult;  and  there 
was  no  absolutely  definite  standard  on  which  the  selection 
was  based.  Whenever  it  was  possible  to  find  some  link 
it  was  done.  Thus,  for  example,  when  Section  II  of  Genesis 
was  read  (6.  9 — 11.  32)  it  was  followed  by  Isaiah  54  because 
of  verse  9,  which  reads,  "For  this  is  as  the  waters  of  Noah 
unto  me :  for  as  I  have  sworn  that  the  waters  of  Noah  should 
no  more  go  over  the  earth,  so  have  I  sworn  that  I  would 
not  be  wroth  with  thee  nor  rebuke  thee.'*  The  case  here 
was  excellent,  but  often  the  appropriateness  was  very 
shadowy,  resting  only  upon  a  remote  similarity  of  ideas 
as  when  Section  I,  Gen.  1.  1 — 6.  8,  was  coupled  with  Isaiah 
42.  5 — 43.  11  because  of  its  first  verse  (5)  which  reads, 
"Thus  saith  God  the  Lord,  he  that  created  the  heavens, 
and  stretched  them  forth;  he  that  spread  abroad  the  earth 
and  that  which  cometh  out  of  it;  he  that  giveth  breath 
unto  the  people  upon  it,  and  spirit  to  them  that  walk  therein." 
A  still  more  weak  connection  is  to  be  found  when  the  Law 
passage  Num.  1-4  is  followed  by  Hos.  2.  1-22,  solely  be- 
cause of  one  word  in  Hos.  2.  2. 

The  length  of  the  Haphtaroth  is  much  less  than  the  length 
of  the  passages  from  the  law,  being  only  from  ten  to  fifty- 
two  verses,  and  the  selection  came  to  be  definitely  fixed 


INTRODUCTION  19 


so  that  it  was  possible  to  provide  for  every  synagogue  a 
list  of  the  passages  from  the  Law  (Sidroth)  and  the  corre- 
sponding lesson  from  the  Prophets  (Haphtaroth).  It  is  to 
be  remembered  that  the  word  "prophet"  as  used  by  the 
Jews  includes  books  which  among  Christians  are  com- 
monly though  erroneously  called  historical  books.  The 
arrangement  followed  in  the  Hebrew  Bible  divides  the 
Scriptures  into  three  classes — the  Law,  the  Prophets,  and 
the  writings  (Heb.,  Kethuhim;  Gr.,  Hagiographa).  The 
Prophets  are  subdivided  into  the  Early  Prophets  (Joshua, 
Judges,  Samuel,  and  Kings)  and  the  Latter  Prophets  (Isaiah, 
Jeremiah,  Ezekiel,  and  the  Twelve,  that  is,  the  Minor 
Prophets).  This  corresponds  to  a  real  difference  in  character 
between  the  different  books,  and  it  is  to  be  lamented  that 
the  early  English  versions  followed  the  arrangement  of 
the  Vulgate,  which  depended  upon  the  Septuagint.  The 
books  of  Joshua,  Judges,  Samuel,  and  Kings  are  written 
by  prophetic  hands  and  in  the  prophetic  spirit  and  are 
different  in  spirit  from  Chronicles,  Ezra,  and  Nehemiah, 
which  represent  the  interpretation  of  God's  will  and  works 
as  the  priests  understood  them.  To  classify  Joshua,  Judges, 
Samuel,  and  Kings  with  the  prophets  is  to  recognize  this 
difference  and  make  a  proper  use  of  it.  With  this  in  mind 
we  can  understand  the  choice  of  the  Haphtaroth,  the  selec- 
tions from  which  are  taken  from  Joshua,  Judges,  I  and  II 
Samuel,  I  and  II  Kings,  Isaiah,  Jeremiah,  Ezekiel,  Hosea, 
Amos,  Jonah,  Micah,  Habakkuk,  Zechariah,  and  Malachi. 
The  favorite  book  is  Isaiah,  which  appears  on  fifteen  of  the 
fifty-four  Sabbaths. 

It  is  believed  that  the  selections  of  the  Haphtaroth  for 
feast  days  may  have  been  made  as  early  as  the  second 
century  of  the  Christian  era,  but  the  definite  selection  for 
Sabbaths  came  much  later,  for  as  late  as  the  second  cen- 
tury the  choice  of  a  prophetic  passage  was  still  left  to  the 
last  of  the  readers  of  the  Tor  ah.     In  early  times  it  was 


20  OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

customary  to  follow  the  reading  of  the  prophetic  passage 
with  comment  or  an  address.  The  classic  instance  is 
narrated  by  Luke  (4.  17ff.)  in  which  Jesus  having  read  the 
lesson  from  Isa.  6L  1,  2  interpreted  it,  applying  it  to  him- 
self. In  the  Jewish  Calendar  of  lessons  as  later  arranged 
this  passage  from  Isaiah  is  not  read,  the  passage  which  is 
read  beginning  at  61.  10  (61.  10 — 63.  9)  with  which  is  read 
from  the  Law  Deut.  29.  10—30.  20. 

The  honor  paid  to  the  reading  of  the  Law  is  hardly 
equaled,  in  modern  times,  when  the  prophets  are  read,  yet 
have  they  also  their  praise  in  good  measure.  After  the  Law 
has  been  read  and  the  time  has  come  to  read  the  Haphtarah, 
or  lesson  from  the  prophets,  a  blessing  is  pronounced  in 
these  words:  "Blessed  art  thou,  O  Lord,  our  God!  King  of 
the  universe;  who  hast  chosen  good  prophets;  and  found 
delight  in  their  words,  which  were  delivered  in  truth. 
Blessed  art  thou,  O  Lord!  who  hast  chosen  the  Law,  thy 
servant  Moses,  thy  people  Israel,  and  the  true  and  righteous 
prophets."  And  after  the  reading  follow  the  words,  "Our 
Redeemer!  the  Lord  of  Hosts  is  his  name,  the  Holy  One 
of  Israel,"  and  there  follows  a  long  prayer  which  is  here  set 
down  in  part:  "Blessed  art  thou,  O  Lord,  our  God!  King  of 
the  universe;  Protector  of  all  the  worlds,  who  art  righteous 
in  all  generations;  the  faithful  God,  who  promisest  and 
performest;  speakest  and  accomplishest;  for  all  thy  words 
are  true  and  just.  Faithful  art  thou,  O  Lord,  our  God! 
and  thy  words  are  faithful;  for  not  one  of  thy  words  shall 
return  back  fruitless.  .  .  .  For  the  sake  of  the  Law,  the 
worship,  and  the  Prophets,  and  this  Sabbath  .  .  .  blessed 
be  thy  name  in  the  mouth  of  every  living  creature,  con- 
tinually, and  for  evermore." 

So  down  the  ages,  not  in  less  but  in  greater  measure, 
has  the  Jewish  Church  honored  the  Holy  Scriptures  and 
given  them  a  place  above  all  else  in  public  worship.  From 
the  synagogue  the  Christian  Church  learned  to  make  the 


INTRODUCTION  21 

reading  of  Scripture  a  part  of  divine  service,  and  to  this 
we  must  turn  to  see,  so  far  as  scanty  materials  will  permit, 
how  the  Scriptures  found  a  place  and  how  in  the  course 
of  time  an  order  for  their  reading  was  established,  or  how 
in  other  branches  or  parts  of  the  universal  Christian  Church 
the  order  disappeared  and  the  reading  was  left  to  choice 
or  even  to  caprice. 

The  earliest  allusion  to  public  reading  of  the  Scriptures 
in  the  Christian  Church  is  found  in  the  injunction  laid  upon 
Timothy,  "Till  I  come  give  heed  to  reading,  to  exhortation, 
to  teaching"  (1  Tim.  4.  13).  This  command  did  not  con- 
cern his  private  but  his  public  reading,  as  the  words  "ex- 
hortation" and  "teaching"  make  plain,  and  is  further  sup- 
ported by  the  command,  "Take  heed  to  thyself  and  to  thy 
teaching.  Continue  in  these  things;  for  in  doing  this  thou 
shalt  save  both  thyself  and  them  that  hear  thee"  (verse 
16).  There  is  no  specification  of  that  which  was  to  be 
read,  but  it  was  the  Old  Testament,  upon  which  the  Lord 
himself  had  fed  his  soul,  and  upon  which  his  church  should 
be  nurtured  both  then  and  forever  afterward.  By  the 
side  of  the  Old  Testament  lessons  there  were  soon  Chris- 
tian documents  to  be  read,  as  we  are  reminded  in  the  com- 
mand, "When  this  epistle  hath  been  read  among  you,  cause 
that  it  be  read  also  in  the  church  of  the  Laodiceans,  and 
that  ye  also  read  the  epistle  from  Laodicea"  (Col.  4.  16); 
and  again,  "I  adjure  you  by  the  Lord  that  this  epistle  be 
read  unto  all  the  brethren"  (1  Thess.  5.  27);  and  yet  again 
in  the  words,  "Blessed  is  he  that  readeth,  and  they  that 
hear  the  words  of  the  prophecy,  and  keep  the  things  which 
are  written  therein:  for  the  time  is  at  hand"  (Rev.  1.  3). 
Here  we  have  the  beginnings  of  the  custom  of  public  read- 
ing of  the  Scriptures,  but  there  is  no  hint  of  any  order  or 
prescription  about  them.  As  the  early  church  was  much 
busied  with  the  effort  to  convince  Jews  of  the  Messiahship 
of  Jesus,  we  shall  probably  not  go  far  astray  if  we  surmise 


n  OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

that  the  Messianic  parts  of  the  prophets  would  be  those 
chiefly  used,  and  they  for  controversial  purposes  with  the 
Jews,  or  to  establish  Jewish  Christians  in  the  new  faith. 

When  the  second  century  is  reached  the  custom  of  read- 
ing lessons  has  become  fixed,  and  Justin  Martyr  is  able 
to  mention  it  as  well  known:  **0n  the  day  called  Sunday 
all  who  live  in  cities  or  in  the  country  gather  together  to 
one  place,  and  the  memoirs  of  the  apostles,  or  the  writings 
of  the  prophets  are  read  as  long  as  time  permits."*  Within 
half  a  century  later  TertuUian  makes  several  references  to 
the  reading  of  Scripture  and  the  singing  of  Psalms,^  and 
again  of  the  reading  of  Scripture  in  the  ordinary  worship,^ 
and  still  further  of  the  reading  of  the  Epistles,^  and  in  some 
other  passages  makes  allusion  to  the  Prophets  and  Gospels. 
There  was  then  a  steady  progress  toward  a  regular  system 
of  reading,  and  in  the  first  half  of  the  third  century  Hip- 
polytus  gives  this  direction:  "Let  Presbyters,  subdeacons, 
and  readers,  and  all  the  people  assemble  daily  in  the  church 
at  time  of  cockcrow,  and  betake  themselves  to  prayers,  to 
psalms,  and  to  the  reading  of  the  Scriptures,  according 
to  the  command  of  the  apostles;  until  I  come  attend  to 
reading."^  There  is  still  no  prescribing  of  what  was  to  be 
read,  but  in  this  same  century  the  first  traces  of  fixed  lessons 
are  to  be  discerned.  Origen^  gives  the  first  known  hint 
when  he  says  that  the  book  of  Job  was  read  in  Holy  Week. 
And  John  Cassian  goes  so  far  as  to  seek  a  heavenly  sanction 
(circa  A.  D.  380)  for  the  order  which  he  knew,  saying, 
*  Throughout  the  whole  of  Egypt  and  the  Thebaiad  the 
number  of  Psalms  is  fixed  at  twelve  both  at  Vespers  and 
in  the  office  of  Nocturns,  in  such  a  way  that  at  the  close 


*  Apology,  1,  67. 
"  de  Anima,  9 

» Apol.  39. 

'  de  Praescript.  Haeret.,  36. 

*  Canon  xxi. 

»  Commentaries  on  Job,  lib.  i. 


INTRODUCTION 


two  lessons  follow,  one  from  the  Old  and  the  other  from 
the  New  Testament.  And  this  arrangement,  fixed  ever  so 
long  ago,  has  continued  unbroken  to  the  present  day  through- 
out so  many  ages,  in  all  the  monasteries  of  those  districts, 
because  it  is  said  that  it  was  no  appointment  of  man's  in- 
vention, but  was  brought  down  from  heaven  to  the  fathers 
by  the  ministry  of  an  angel." ^'^  It  is  clear  that  there  was 
a  fixed  order  for  the  use  of  the  Psalms,  and  it  seems  here 
to  be  implied  that  there  was  likewise  a  fixed  order  for  other 
books.  However  that  may  then  have  been  in  Africa,  there 
were  certainly  such  lessons  elsewhere,  for  Saint  Basil  the 
Great ^^  mentions  fixed  lessons  for  certain  occasions  as  taken 
from  Isaiah  and  Proverbs,  while  from  Chrysostom^^  and 
Augustine^^  we  learn  that  Genesis  was  read  in  Lent,  and 
Job  and  Jonah  in  Passion  Week.  There  was  then  a  clear 
tendency  toward  prescribing  lessons  for  certain  great  periods 
in  the  Church  Year,  but  there  must  have  still  been  large 
liberty  of  choice  during  the  rest  of  the  year. 

By  the  time  when  the  Apostolical  Constitutions  was 
written,  probably  by  a  Syrian  Christian  and  perhaps  as 
early  as  A.D.  340  or  as  late  as  A.  D.  380,  we  have  a  still 
more  plain  declaration  about  the  progress  toward  a  definite 
lectionary.  The  passage  is  so  interesting  in  itself,  that  it 
needs  no  apology  for  lengthened  quotation.  It  is  addressed 
to  the  Bishop  and  begins:  "When  thou  callest  an  assembly 
of  the  Church,  as  one  that  is  the  Commander  of  a  great 
ship,  appoint  the  Assemblies  to  be  made  with  all  possible 
skill,  charging  the  Deacons,  as  mariners,  to  prepare  places 
for  the  brethren,  as  for  passengers,  with  all  due  care  and 
decency.  And  first  let  the  building  be  long,  with  its  head 
to  the  east,  with  its  vestries  on  both  sides  at  the  east  end, 
and  so  'twill  be  like  a  ship.     In  the  middle  let  the  bishop's 

^"de  caenob.  inst.,  ii,  4. 
»i  Horn,  xiii,  de  bapt. 
1*  Horn.  Ixiii  in  Act. 
"Tract  vi  in  Joann. 


24 OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

throne  be  placed;  and  on  each  side  of  him  let  the  presbytery 
sit  down;  and  let  the  Deacons  stand  near  at  hand,  in  close 
and  small  girt  garments;  for  they  are  like  the  mariners 
and  managers  of  the  ship:  With  regard  to  these,  let  the 
laity  sit  on  the  other  side,  with  all  quietness  and  good  order. 
And  let  the  women  sit  by  themselves,  they  also  keeping 
silence.  In  the  middle,  let  the  reader  stand  upon  some 
high  place;  let  him  read  the  Books  of  Moses,  of  Joshua  the 
son  of  Nuriy  of  the  Judges,  and  of  the  Kings  and  of  the 
Chronicles,  and  those  written  after  the  return  from  the 
captivity;  and  besides  these,  the  books  of  Job  and  of  Solo- 
mon, and  of  the  sixteen  prophets.  But  when  there  have 
been  two  lessons  severally  read,  let  some  other  person  sing 
the  hymns  of  David,  and  let  the  people  join  at  the  con- 
clusions of  the  verses.  Afterward  let  our  Acts  be  read,  and 
the  Epistles  of  Paul,  our  fellow  worker,  which  he  sent  to  the 
Churches  under  the  conduct  of  the  Holy  Spirit;  and  after- 
ward let  a  Deacon  or  a  Presbyter  read  the  Gospels,  both 
those  which  Matthew  and  John  have  delivered  to  you,  and 
those  which  the  fellow  workers  of  Paul  received  and  left 
to  you,  Luke  and  Mark.  And  while  the  Gospel  is  read, 
let  all  the  Presbyters  and  Deacons,  and  all  the  people  stand 
up  in  great  silence;  for  it  is  written.  Be  silent  and  hear, 
O  Israel.  And  again.  But  do  thou  stand  there  and  hear. 
In  the  next  place,  let  the  Presbyters,  one  by  one,  not  all 
together,  exhort  the  people,  and  the  Bishop  in  the  last 
place  as  being  the  commander."^^ 

There  is  here  no  indication  whether  the  lessons  were 
according  to  a  fixed  system  or  a  free  choice,  but  the  in- 
teresting and  important  matter  is  that  two  Old  Testament 
lessons  were  to  be  read,  then  the  Psalms  sung,  and  after 
that  came  readings  from  the  Epistles  and  then  the  Gospel, 


"The  Apostolical  Constitutions  ii,  57.  For  translation  into  English  compare 
William  Whiston,  Primitive  Christianity  Revived,  Vol.  ii,  section  xxviii,  p.  260ff. 
(London,  1711). 


INTRODUCTION  25 


which  even  at  that  early  date  was  to  be  heard  by  the  whole 
congregation  standing.  The  influence  of  the  example  of 
the  synagogue  is  seen  plainly  in  the  double  lesson  from  the 
Old  Testament,  of  which  it  may  safely  be  surmised  that 
one  was  from  the  Law  and  the  second  from  the  Prophets. 
When  to  these  there  are  added  passages  from  the  Epistles 
and  Gospels  there  were  sure  signs  of  the  formation  of  a 
system  to  which  was  applied  the  technical  term  Pericope, 
The  word  comes  directly  from  the  late  Latin  pericope, 
meaning  a  section  of  a  book,  which  derives  from  the  Greek 
word  of  the  same  form,  the  origin  of  which  is  from  the 
Greek  peri,  "around,"  and  kope,  "cutting."  Used  in  the 
sense  of  a  scriptural  passage,  the  word  appears  early,  for 
Justin  Martyr^^  classifies  under  the  word  pericope,  the 
passages  Isa.  42.  5-13;  Jer.  11.  19;  Isa.  33.  13-19  and  Mic.  4. 
1-7 — all  these  being  from  the  Old  Testament. 

As  the  tendency  toward  a  fixed  system  of  lessons  in- 
creased and  passages  more  or  less  suited  to  the  portions 
of  the  Church  Year  were  chosen  there  grew  up  a  custom 
foreshadowed  in  the  reference  to  exhortations  by  the  Pres- 
byters and  bishops  in  the  Apostolical  Constitutions.  This 
was  the  reading  of  a  homily  or  the  preaching  of  a  sermon 
based  upon  the  lessons  which  had  been  read,  and  as  the 
lesson  for  the  day  was  called  a  Pericope,  the  method  by 
which  the  sermon  was  based  on  a  verse  or  verses  from  the 
appointed  section  was  called  a  pericopic  system  of  preach- 
ing. Luther  generally,  if  not  always,  followed  this  plan, 
taking  a  passage,  and  commonly  a  long  one,  or  at  least 
of  considerable  length,  from  the  lesson  of  the  day,  and 
usually  from  the  Gospels  or  Epistles.  This  is  still  com- 
monly the  use  on  the  Continent  of  Europe,  and  the  influ- 
ence of  it  is  to  be  seen  in  the  frequency  with  which  clergy- 
men of  the  Church  of  England  and  of  the  Episcopal  Church 
in  America  take  a  text  from  the  Gospel  or  Epistle  of  the 

"Dial.  c.  Tryph.  c.  65,  72,  78,  110. 


^6  OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

day.  The  system  had  a  great  disadvantage,  it  must  be 
admitted,  for  after  a  preacher  had  discoursed  for  several 
years  upon  selections  from  the  same  lesson  he  was  much 
disposed  to  seek  after  novelty  by  some  ingenious  twist 
or  turn  which  a  strict  interpretation  of  the  passage  could 
not  justify.  It  had,  however,  a  great  compensating  advan- 
tage in  that  the  preacher  was  forced  to  cover  the  whole 
field  of  biblical  teaching  and  was  so  prevented  from  slipping 
into  the  constant  iteration  of  fads  or  fancies  of  his  own. 
There  is,  then,  something  to  be  said  for  pericopic  preaching, 
and  wise  men  might  well  consider  whether  the  adoption 
of  it,  with  due  allowance  of  divergence  to  suit  some  new 
condition,  were  not  a  wise  procedure.  Indeed,  in  recent 
times  unless  one  had  some  system  of  one's  own  to  which 
general  heed  might  be  given,  the  various  philanthropic 
organizations  would  tend  to  occupy  one  Sunday  after 
another  with  multitudinous  causes  (Prison  Day,  Divorce 
Day,  Mother's  Day,  Father's  Day,  Red  Cross  Day,  Near 
East  Relief,  City  Missions,  Home  Missions,  Foreign  Mis- 
sions), and  the  whole  glorious  preaching  of  the  Word  in 
its  message  of  God  and  redemption  would  give  way  to 
practical,  legislative  or  eleemosynary  agitation.  Then  the 
minister  or  the  preacher  will  turn  reformer,  and  religion 
lose  the  mystery  and  glory  of  God. 

The  earliest  lectionaries  of  which  a  memory  has  been 
preserved  date  from  the  middle  of  the  fifth  century,  both 
from  France.  The  oldest  is  reported  to  have  been  made 
by  Claudianus  Mamercus,  and  was  arranged  not  for  the 
entire  year  but  rather  for  the  church  festivals.  It  has 
perished,  and  we  know  of  it  only  by  the  scant  allusion  made 
to  its  compiler  after  his  death  by  Bishop  ApoUinaris  Si- 
donius  of  Arverni,  the  modern  Clermont."  There  is  record 
of  another  made  A.  D.  458  for  the  church  at  Massilia,  the 


"  "Hie  solemnibufl  annuls  paravit  quae  quo  tempore  lecta  convenirent"  (Epist.  IV, 
N.  11,  MSL.  T.  58). 


INTRODUCTION  27 


modern  Marseilles,  by  Musaeus,  which  was  likewise  made 
only  for  the  festivals,  and  has  also  perished. ^^ 

The  oldest  lectionary  still  surviving  was  prepared  in  the 
eighth  Christian  century,  found  at  Luxeuil  in  Burgundy 
and  known  generally  as  the  Lectionarium  Gallicanum  which 
provided  lessons  from  the  prophets  one  or  more  readings 
for  most  of  the  church  festivals  preceded  by  headings  such 
as  ''Lectio  Libri  Esaye  Prophetae.^*  From  this  time  onward 
lectionaries  were  numerous  in  all  the  churches,  west  and 
east,  Syrian  as  well  as  Latin,  Armenian  as  well  as  Greek. 
For  this  present  purpose  the  most  important  lectionaries 
are  those  of  the  western  churches.  The  most  far-reaching 
of  these  is  the  lectionary  of  the  Roman  Church,  whose 
beginnings  may  certainly  be  traced  as  far  back  as  the  eleventh 
century,  from  which  there  has  come  down  the  great  lec- 
tionary called  variously  Comes,  or  Liber  Comitis  or  Liber 
ComicuSy  which  began  its  readings  with  the  first  Sunday  in 
Advent,  placing  all  the  way  through  the  year  the  emphasis 
upon  the  Epistles  and  Gospels,  yet  substituting  for  the 
Epistle  an  Old  Testament  passage  on  certain  days.  Thus 
upon  Epiphany  Sunday  Isaiah,  chapter  60,  was  read  instead 
of  the  Epistle,  and  in  the  Passion  Week  Hosea,  Genesis, 
Exodus,  Deuteronomy,  and  Jonah  all  found  mention. 
The  passages  read  in  this  lectionary  were  very  brief,  and  it 
is  not  surprising  that  an  attempt  should  be  made  to  revise 
its  order  and  extend  the  length  of  the  readings.  This  was 
accomplished  in  the  lectionary  made  by  a  renowned  Fran- 
ciscan, Francisco  da  Quignonez  (Francis  de  Quinones),  who 
brought  out  in  1535  a  Breviary  with  a  revised  form  of  lessons. 
It  was  printed  and  widely  used  until  1558,  when  it  was 
suppressed  by  papal  authority,  and  ceased  to  be  printed. 
It  was  exceedingly  well  done,  and  gave  a  wider  and  better 

"  "Musaeus,  Massiliensis  ecclesiae  presbyter  hortatu  S.  Venerii  episcopi  excerpsit 
de  Sanctis  scripturis  lectiones  totius  anni  festivis  diebus  aptas,  responsoria  etiam 
psalmorum  capitula  tempwribua  et  lectionibus  apta."  (Gennadius,  De  script,  eccles. 
c.  79,  MSL.  I,  58.) 


28 OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

view  of  the  Old  Testament.  It  began  with  Isaiah  at  Advent, 
followed  by  other  Prophets,  and  the  Wisdom  books  came 
after  Christmas,  to  be  followed  at  Septuagesima  by  Genesis 
and  again  by  the  Prophets  until  Easter.  Later  portions 
of  Exodus,  Samuel,  Kings,  Daniel,  Tobit,  Judith,  Esther, 
and  Job  all  made  contributions  to  the  knowledge  of  hearers. 
It  was  a  sore  pity  that  after  Francisco's  death  (died  540) 
the  book  should  have  come  under  censure  and  finally  to 
suppression,  but  it  was  not  possible  to  break  off  its  influence. 
Its  principle  of  two  lessons,  one  from  the  Old  and  the  second 
from  the  New,  was  destined  to  live  on  in  the  influence  which 
it  exerted  upon  the  lectionaries  of  the  Anglican  Church. 
Cranmer  had  drawn  up  a  Litany  in  1544  and,  influenced 
chiefly  by  the  Breviary  of  Francisco,  in  the  First  Book  of 
Common  Prayer  of  the  Church  of  England  (1549)  adopted 
the  scheme  of  two  lessons,  the  one  from  the  Old  and  the 
other  from  the  New  Testament.  Cranmer  abandoned  the 
Church  Year  system  and  began  his  lessons  with  January 
instead  of  with  Advent,  but  made  a  great  advance  in  the 
length  of  the  Old  Testament  lessons  by  which  the  greater 
part  of  the  canonical  books  and  a  lesser  portion  of  the 
Apocrypha  were  read  through  once  a  year.  In  the  Prayer 
Book  of  Elizabeth  (1559)  a  return  was  made  to  the  Ecclesi- 
astical year  and  the  lessons  began  with  Advent.  The 
variations  from  this  scheme  of  Lessons  were  very  slight 
until  the  Lectionary  was  revised  in  1871,  in  which  the 
length  of  many  lessons  was  much  reduced,  but  the  general 
principles  were  retained.  Criticism  of  this  lectionary  was 
widespread,  chiefly  because  of  certain  unfortunate  be- 
ginnings or  endings  of  the  New  Testament  lessons  which 
were  believed  to  break  the  sense  in  unhappy  fashion.  An 
attempt  to  introduce  a  better  lectionary  in  1878  failed,  but 
a  great  step  forward  is  now  in  process  in  the  Church  of 
England  in  a  revision  of  the  lectionary  begun  in  1913  and 
published  in  1917.     This  is  the  most  elaborate  lectionary 


INTRODUCTION 


ever  made.  It  not  only  provides  lessons  for  Sundays,  for 
the  great  festivals  and  for  certain  outstanding  Saints'  days, 
but  also  for  every  day  in  the  week,  and  besides  all  this 
gives  in  many  cases  alternatives.  The  principle  followed 
by  the  committee  upon  these  points  is  thus  declared: 

(i.)  First  Lessons. — Following  ancient  precedent,  we  have  set 
down  Isaiah  for  reading  during  Advent  and  until  the  second  Sunday 
after  Epiphany,  and  for  the  remaining  Sundays  after  Epiphany  cer- 
tain of  the  minor  prophets  (Hosea,  Joel,  Amos,  Micah).  Again  in 
accordance  with  ancient  precedent,  we  begin  the  reading  of  the  Penta- 
teuch on  Septuagesima  Sunday.  The  historical  books  follow,  and 
extend  from  the  first  Sunday  after  Trinity  until  the  fourteenth.  The 
books  of  Daniel,  Jeremiah,  Ezekiel,  are  read  from  Evensong  on  the 
fourteenth  Sunday  after  Trinity  to  Evensong  on  the  twenty-second. 
Lessons  from  the  book  of  Proverbs  are  assigned  to  the  remaining 
Sundays  after  Trinity.  Special  Lessons  are  chosen  for  the  great 
festivals,  and  also  for  the  first  Sunday  after  Easter  and  for  the  Sunday 
next  before  Advent. 

Influenced  by  a  desire  (a)  to  meet  the  needs  of  different  types  of 
congregations,  (6)  to  provide  a  certain  amount  of  variation  for  suc- 
cessive years,  (c)  to  make  it  possible  for  congregations  to  hear  in  church 
on  Sunday  selections  from  the  less  familiar  parts  of  the  Old  Testa- 
ment and  from  some  books  of  the  Apocrypha,  we  have  provided 
alternatives  to  the  lessons  taken  from  the  Pentateuch,  from  the  his- 
torical books,  and  from  the  book  of  Proverbs.  We  have  deliberately 
refrained  from  providing  alternative  Lessons  on  Septuagesima  (when 
the  story  of  creation  is  read),  the  fifth  Sunday  in  Lent,  Palm  Sunday, 
and  Easter  Day.  We  desire  to  put  it  on  record  that  in  this  part  of 
our  work  we  have  gone  on  the  assumption  (which  we  earnestly  hope 
will  be  fulfilled)  that  the  choice  between  alternative  lessons  will  not 
be  made  capriciously,  but  according  to  some  definite  principle  or 
plan.^^ 

This  splendid  lectionary  has  not  yet  passed  the  long  range 
of  constructive  criticism  and  the  test  of  time,  but  one  may 

18  Convocation  of  Canterbury,  Report  of  Joint  Committee.  Society  for  Pro- 
moting Christian  Knowledge,  1917  [1917,  No.  501].  The  Committee  was  composed 
of  the  following: 

Bishop  of  Ely  (Dr.  Chase,  Chmn.).  Dean  of  Ely  (Dr.  Kirkpatrick). 

Bishop  of  Norwich  (Dr.  Pollock).  Chancellor  Bernard. 

Bishop  of  Oxford  (Dr.  Gore).  Canon  Dalton. 

Bishop  of  Truro  (Dr.  Burrows).  Canon  Lake. 

Dean  of  Westminster  (Dr.  Ryle).  Canon  A.  W.  Robinson. 

Dean  of  Winchester  (Dr.  Furneaux).  Canon  Southwell. 


30  OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

hope  that  wherein  it  falls  short  of  the  great  ideal  of  public 
instruction  by  the  reading  of  Scripture  in  the  hearing  of 
the  people  time  and  use  and  the  advice  and  experience  of 
others  may  bring  improvement,  and  the  way  appear  for 
other  churches  to  imitate  a  good  example  in  so  far  as  sug- 
gestions from  this  may  fit  special  conditions  of  their  own. 
Having  followed  somewhat  the  history  of  the  making 
and  promulgation  of  lectionaries  or  Pericopes  in  the  Western 
church,  and  thence  on  into  England,  we  should  now  see 
briefly  how  the  Reformation  in  Germany  met  the  problem. 
Luther  criticized  the  Roman  system  with  courage  and  a  clear 
mind  and  apparently  intended  or  at  least  hoped  to  make 
a  new  Pericope  for  the  churches  of  the  Reformed  Faith. 
This  failed,  nor  apparently  did  he  ever  begin  it.  His  atti- 
tude to  the  old  system  finally  crystallized  into  this,  that 
as  far  as  the  Roman  Comes  was  a  lectionary,  in  the  strict 
sense  of  the  word,  he  was  entirely  dissatisfied  with  it  and 
desired  either  its  enlargement  and  improvement  or,  failing 
that,  its  entire  supersession.  As  far,  on  the  other  hand, 
as  it  was  a  Pericope  in  the  narrower  sense  of  the  word, 
a  system  for  providing  texts  and  an  order  for  preaching 
according  to  the  Church  Year,  he  did  not  disapprove  of  it 
as  a  whole,  but  was  of  the  opinion  that  large  liberty  of  choice 
should  come  to  the  ministry.  These  declarations  of  the 
great  Reformation  master  had  influence  which  began  at 
once  and  was  long  extended.  One  may  discern  this  as 
early  as  1528,  when  the  Church  Order  in  Brunswick 
(Braunschweig)  made  a  substitute  for  other  lessons  and 
bade  the  reading  of  Isa.  40.  1-11,  and  11.  1-10.  Other 
minor  variations  which  provided  chiefly  for  longer  New 
Testament  lessons  began  in  Brandenburg  in  1533  and  in 
Wurttemberg  in  1536.  A  much  greater  effort  was  made 
in  Pommern  (Pomerania)  in  1568,  when  ministers  were 
bidden  so  to  arrange  the  lessons  for  Sundays  and  week  days 
that  the  most  important  and  useful  books  of  the  Bible 


INTRODUCTION  31 


should  be  publicly  read  in  order.  This  was  a  difficult,  if 
not,  indeed,  impossible,  command  if  it  were  to  be  inter- 
preted literally,  but  it  displayed  at  least  a  proper  recog- 
nition of  the  importance  of  the  instruction  of  the  people 
in  the  Bible  itself  for  its  own  sake. 

In  Switzerland  the  Reformed  Church  began  early  to 
cast  aside  the  brief  portions  and  the  sharply  defined  Pericopes 
to  determine  order  and  content  of  preaching.  Zwingli  in 
Zurich  preached  over  great  areas  of  Scripture,  and  with 
very  definite  purposes  in  each  case — thus  the  Gospel  of 
Matthew  and  then  the  Acts — that  his  church  might  learn 
how  the  gospel  was  "propagated  and  promulgated,"  and 
passed  thence  onward  into  the  Epistles  of  Paul.  But  his 
greatest  move  was  taken  in  July,  1525,  when  he  began  to 
preach  upon  the  book  of  Genesis,  though  before  this,  preach- 
ing had  been  altogether  from  the  New  Testament.  And 
Bullinger,  who  was  his  successor,  is  said  to  have  preached 
from  nearly  all  the  books  of  the  Old  and  the  New  Testa- 
ments. For  such  a  man  as  he  there  were  no  Pericopes, 
and  it  is  not  surprising  that  they  vanished  out  of  Zurich 
never  to  return  in  the  old  form.  At  the  other  side  of  Switzer- 
land Calvin  carried  on  a  vigorous  polemic  against  the  same 
old  system,  though  admitting  advantages  which  it  did 
possess,  as  others  had  pointed  out. 

Among  the  Lutherans  of  Germany  the  old  system  died 
of  its  own  unfitness  for  the  practical  purposes  of  a  new  and 
living  church.  The  critical,  historical,  and  scientific  study 
which  Ernst  Ranke^^  made  of  the  old  system  was  enough 
to  convince  all  who  were  capable  of  conviction  that  a  newer 
and  better  lectionary  was  essential,  yet  was  it  impossible 
to  secure  it.  The  old  always  has  a  certain  strength  because 
of  its  possession,   and   as   Germany  was  then  broken  up 

"  Das  kirkliche  Perikopensystem  aus  den  dltesten  Urkunden  der  Romischen  Liturgie 
dargelegt  und  erlautert.  Ein  Versuch  von  Dr.  Ernst  Ranke,  Pfarrer  zu  Buchau  in 
Oberfranken.  Berlin,  1847.  The  book  is  still  important,  nor  has  its  influence  en- 
tirely disappeared. 


32  OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

into  small  states,  each  ordering  its  own  worship  in  its  own 
way,  unity  of  effort  was  impossible.  For  about  one  hun- 
dred and  fifty  years  the  various  Lutheran  churches  in  the 
German  states  went  as  it  willed,  some  holding  in  consider- 
able measure  the  Roman  method,  while  others  made  ten- 
tative experiments  in  the  attempt  to  construct  a  new  order 
that  might  seem  to  fit  better  into  the  theory  which  Prot- 
estantism held  concerning  the  Holy  Scriptures.  Thus,  for 
example,  Hannover  in  1769  ordered  the  introduction  of 
quite  a  new  system  of  Pericdpes  and  commanded  that  at 
every  "ordinary  and  public  divine  service"  there  should 
be  read  "a  selected  especially  instructive  yet  not  too  long 
a  passage  from  the  canonical  books  of  the  Bible."  In 
1793  Baden  set  forth  a  system  which  recognizes  the  virtues 
of  a  free  choice  of  passages  to  be  read,  yet  is  unwilling  to 
give  up  altogether  the  Roman  Pericopes,  but  supplies  a 
new  suggestive  plan  of  readings  to  begin  not  with  Advent 
but  with  January.  In  1881  in  the  same  kingdom  the  be- 
ginning with  Advent  was  reestablished. 

In  1896  a  move  was  made  in  a  conference  of  German 
evangelical  churches  to  secure  a  radical  revision  of  the 
old  Pericopes  and  the  adoption  of  a  lectionary.  The  at- 
tempt was  honorable  and  worthy,  but  various  local  interests 
and  customs  prevented  its  complete  adoption.  The  churches 
in  Germany  still,  therefore,  continue  in  possession  of  sys- 
tems each  with  values  of  its  own,  yet  each,  at  least  in  some 
cases,  strangely  neglectful  of  the  Old  Testament.  In  this 
respect  the  Lutheran  churches  of  America  have  made  a 
substantial  as  well  as  admirable  advance  upon  their  mother 
church  in  Germany. ^^ 

20  The  system  of  Scripture  Lessons  adopted  by  the  United  Lutheran  Church  in 
America  richly  deserves  study,  and,  indeed,  imitation  in  many  respects.  It  is  pub- 
lished by  (a)  The  General  Synod  of  the  Evangelical  Lutheran  Church  in  the  United 
States  of  America,  (b)  The  Trustees  of  the  General  Council  of  the  Evangelical  Lu- 
theran Church  in  North  America,  and  (c)  The  United  Synod  of  the  Evangelical  Lu- 
theran Church  in  the  South,  and  is  to  be  found  in  the  "Common  Service  Book  of  the 
Lutheran  Church,  authorized  by  the  United  Lutheran  Church  in  America."     Phila- 


INTRODUCTION  33 


In  this  little  sketch  of  the  rise  and  progress,  as  well  also 
as  the  decay  of  systems  of  public  reading  of  the  Scriptures 
many  attempts  in  other  churches  than  those  specifically 
mentioned  have  necessarily  been  passed  over  in  silence, 
and  no  allusion  has  been  made  to  the  use  of  the  New  Testa- 
ment except  as  the  necessities  of  the  better  understanding 
of  the  Old  had  made  it  necessary.  I  can  make  no  pre- 
tensions to  New  Testament  scholarship  and  should  be 
chary  of  expressing  any  opinion  as  to  how  it  should  be  or 
could  be  more  systematically  read.  There  can  be  no  doubt 
that  for  every  Christian  church  the  New  Testament  is 
fundamental;  if  it  be  not  made  known  among  the  people, 
there  can  be  no  sound  Christian  thinking,  and  ignorance 
or  fanaticism  must  rule  the  church — and  they  are  equally 
dangerous.  The  case  for  the  Old  Testament  is  different, 
yet  has  it  a  proper  place  of  dignity  and  importance.  It 
needs  often  be  said  that  the  Old  Testament  was  the  Bible 
of  the  men  who  founded  the  early  church.  It  provided 
the  occasion  and  was  the  subject  of  the  earliest  contro- 
versies with  those  who  came  from  Judaism  as  well  as  with 
those  who  did  not  come.  The  apostles  held  it  to  be  in- 
spired and  so  used  it,  but  far  above  all  these  was  the  Lord 
himself,  whose  sword  it  was,  and  whose  soul  was  fed  upon 
these  words  of  wonder  and  of  life.  It  is  madness  and  folly 
to  talk  of  making  any  Christian  life  rounded  and  complete, 
fully  furnished  and  richly  adorned,  without  its  ministry  of 
knowledge,  its  magic  of  words,  splendor  of  images,  and 
store  of  inexhaustible  power.  Yet  has  it  been  sorely  ne- 
glected. We  who  have  been  teaching  in  colleges,  univer- 
sities and  theological  seminaries  have  been  watching  whole 

delphia,  The  Board  of  Publication  of  the  United  Lutheran  Church  in  America,  n.  d. 
(issued  and  copyrighted  in  1917).  See  especially  pp.  298-303  which  contain  not  only 
the  revised  table  of  lessons,  but  also  tables  showing  the  lectionaries  of  Thomasiua, 
Hannover,  and  Eisenach.  The  same  book  contains  also  a  "Table  of  Lessons  for  Morn- 
ing and  Evening  throughout  the  year,"  which  is  arranged  for  week  days  only  with  a 
New  Testament  lesson  in  the  morning  and  an  Old  Testament  Lesson  in  the  evening, 
pp.  304-312  (Hymn  and  Tune  Edition). 


34  OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

generations  of  bright  and  happy  youth,  who  are  Christian 
at  heart  and  more  or  less  instructed  in  the  doctrine  and 
message  of  the  church,  yet  have  next  to  no  knowledge  of 
the  origins  of  all  this  in  the  progressive  revelation  of  God 
in  the  Old  Testament.  Worse  still,  most  of  them  know 
little — often  almost  nothing — of  the  great  names  and  mighty 
deeds  and  living  words  of  the  heroes  of  literature  and  his- 
tory there  preserved.  The  lecturer  who  lets  fall  an  allusion 
to  some  Hebrew  name,  some  melodious  phrase,  some  deed 
of  heroic  struggle  for  the  religion  of  Jehovah  sees  at  once 
in  some  of  the  eyes  before  him  the  telltale  glance  of  strange- 
ness— the  word  was  unfamiliar,  it  awakened  no  response. 

The  fundamental  fault  is  with  the  home,  but  the  church 
must  bear  a  full  share  of  it.  How  often  or  how  widely 
have  these  youth  heard  the  Old  Testament  read  with  any 
breadth  or  comprehensiveness  in  the  church?  Except  in 
those  churches  that  have  possessed  a  lectionary  prepared 
by  authority  and  imposed  by  law,  the  reading  of  the  Old 
Testament  has  been  casual,  capricious,  or  according  to 
some  fancy  or  familiarity  of  the  preacher  or  pastor.  Small 
wonder  is  it  that  youth  wins  no  large  familiarity,  no  ease 
of  memory  in  these  rich  and  glorious  words  and  ways.  The 
Sunday  school  has  tried  hard  to  fill  the  gap,  and  never 
harder  than  in  recent  years.  Its  whole  scheme  of  study 
has  been  recast,  its  method  revised  and  modernized;  it  has 
enlisted  the  best  scholarship  in  the  preparation  of  note  and 
comment,  and  trained  teachers  in  schools  and  conventions. 
From  this  a  great  and  beautiful  harvest  may  justly  be 
hoped.  Let  us  now  crown  this  by  restoring  the  Old  Testa- 
ment to  a  place  of  honor  and  dignity  in  the  church  service. 
Let  the  youth  before  they  come  to  study  the  prophets  hear 
Isaiah  and  Jeremiah  read  aloud  in  the  congregation  of  God's 
people.  If  the  man  who  reads  has  prepared  himself  to 
read  by  knowing  that  which  he  is  reading,  by  putting  mind 
and  heart  upon  it  in  advance,  so  that  his  heart  burns  with 


INTRODUCTION  35 


a  translated  passion,  and  his  mind  flames  with  a  recreated 
message,  then  shall  these  books  live  again  and  generations 
of  God's  people  feel  and  know  them.  To  this  end  and 
purpose,  in  this  hope  and  desire,  is  this  little  book  com- 
piled and  edited.  If  some  would  now  care  about  this 
matter  as  much  as  the  mind,  heart,  and  hand  that  made  it, 
there  would  be  a  better  day  in  God's  house  for  God's  ancient 
Scriptm-es. 


FIRST  SUNDAY  IN  ADVENT  37 


jFirjSt  ^unbap  in  ^bbent 

Jeremiah  31.  10-14,  27-34 
[Alternative  on  p.  167.] 

The  greatest  of  the  prophets  is  Jeremiah,  and  the  suffi- 
cient justification  for  so  declaring  him  is  in  the  few  verses 
(31-34)  which  come  at  the  end  of  this  passage.  Born  at 
Anathoth,  a  small  village  three  and  a  half  miles  northeast 
of  Jerusalem,  about  the  year  650,  and  called  to  be  a  prophet 
in  B.  C.  6'26y  he  survived  the  utter  destruction  of  Jeru- 
salem by  Nebuchadrezzar  in  B.  C.  586.  He  saw  the  storms 
gathering,  watched  with  his  own  keenly  observant  eyes  the 
madness,  folly,  and  sin  of  his  people,  and  then  their  fearful 
sufferings.  He  was  perfectly  clear  in  his  own  mind  that 
the  sufferings  were  the  direct  consequence  of  the  divine 
displeasure,  and  that  the  origin  of  the  wrath  of  God  was 
to  be  found  in  the  faithlessness  of  the  people.  God  had 
sought  them  for  himself  and  at  Sinai  had  made  a  covenant 
with  them.  It  had  failed  of  its  purpose,  because  they  had 
broken  it.  It  is  the  greatness  of  Jeremiah  that  he  per- 
ceived that  an  external  covenant  could  not  save  the  people, 
and  great  as  was  the  Mosaic  covenant,  it  was  nevertheless, 
in  greater  part  at  least,  an  external  covenant.  There  was 
needed  an  internal  covenant,  a  changed  heart,  and  this 
is  the  covenant  which  is  here  set  forth.  The  description 
of  the  covenant  is  placed  as  a  climax,  and  to  introduce 
it  to  the  hearer's  ear  there  are  a  few  preliminary  verses, 
part  of  which,  namely,  10-14,  would  by  some  be  ascribed 
to  another  prophet.  The  authorship  of  them  is,  however, 
of  little  importance;  the  main  point  is  that  there  is  no 
longer  any  sufficient  reason  for  doubting  Jeremiah's  author- 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 


ship  of  the  covenant  passage,  which  is  the  real  point  in 
this  lesson. 

12.  goodness;  here  it  means,  bounty,  in  the  material 
and  physical  sense. 

32.  took  them  by  the  hand.  The  metaphor  is  a  father 
gently  leading  his  children's  tottering  steps.  It  is  the  child- 
hood of  Israel  as  a  nation. 

33.  their  God  . . .  my  people.  This  intimate  personal  re- 
lationship was  intended  to  be  secured  by  the  older  cove- 
nant (Exod.  19.  5,  6;  2  Sam.  7.  24),  but  it  had  failed,  simply 
because  the  people  had  broken  it.  The  new  covenant 
would  succeed  because  the  hearts  would  be  changed. 

This  doctrine  of  the  New  Covenant  advances  far  beyond 
all  other  of  the  prophetic  doctrines,  and  marks  Jeremiah 
as  the  greatest  of  the  prophets.  In  him  the  climax  was 
reached.  None  other  was  to  surpass  him  until  He  should 
come  of  whom  the  prophets  had  spoken.  The  Lord  himself 
took  Jeremiah's  doctrine,  made  it  his  own,  and  pointing  out 
all  its  implications  and  suggesting  its  applications  advanced 
as  far  beyond  Jeremiah  as  he  had  beyond  all  who  had  gone 
before  him. 


SECOND  SUNDAY  IN  ADVENT  39 


II 
^econb  ^unbap  m  ^bbent 

MiCAH  4.  1-7;  0.  2-4 
[Alternative  p.  169.] 

MicAH   prophesied,   according   to   the   superscription  of 

his   book,   during   the   reigns   of  Jotham    (739-734),   Ahaz 

(733-721  (?)  ),  and  Hezekiah  (715-689  (?)  ),  and  the  first 

three  chapters  of  his  book  reflect  the  situation,  with  a  fair 

degree  of  clearness,  which  we  know  to  have  obtained  at 

least  in  the  period  of  Hezekiah.     The  rest  of  the  book  is  of 

doubtful  origin,  and  some  of  it  seems  clearly  to  be  late. 

It  is,   however,   timeless   in   application,  and  the   passage 

here  chosen  is  beautiful  in  itself  and  well  fitted  for  public 

reading  in  the  season  approaching  Christmas. 

4.  I.  In  the  latter  days,  or,  rather,  in  the  issue  of  the 

days,  that  is,  at  the  dawn  of  the  Messianic  age.     The 

passage  verses  1-3  is  inserted,  with  slight  variations, 

also  in  Isa.  2.  2-4. 

established  . . .  exalted  not  literally,  but  in  repute 
and  honor  above  all  else. 

peoples  shall  flow  unto  it.    All  nations  shall  come 
to  bring  honor  to  Jehovah  and  to  learn  of  him. 

2.  instruction.  R.  V.  translates  "law,"  but  that 
technical  word  would  be  unsuited  to  the  other  peoples 
and  the  Hebrew  word  Tor  ah  means  literally  "instruc- 
tion," "teaching." 

3.  arbitrate  for.  R.  V.,  "reprove";  margin,  "decide 
concerning." 

6-7.  The  sequence  of  thought  with  what  precedes  is 
not  clear.  The  verses  seem  to  belong  to  the  exilic 
period  and  to  refer  to  the  return.  They  are,  how- 
ever, not  unsuitable  for  this  present  reading. 


40  OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

5.  2.  As  Bethlehem  was  the  home  of  David,  so  is  it  to 
be  the  birthplace  of  the  Messianic  King  who  is  to  con- 
tinue the  line  of  David. 

from  ancient  days.  The  phrase  is  indefinite,  as 
may  be  seen  by  a  glance  at  its  use  elsewhere,  for  exam- 
ple in  the  passage,  "In  that  day  will  I  raise  up  the 
tabernacle  of  David  that  is  fallen,  and  close  up  the 
breaches  thereof;  and  I  will  raise  up  his  ruins,  and 
I  will  build  it  as  in  the  days  of  old"  (Amos  9.  11), 
and  again  in  the  prediction,  "Then  shall  the  offering 
of  Judah  and  Jerusalem  be  pleasant  unto  Jehovah, 
as  in  the  days  of  old,  and  as  in  ancient  times"  (Mai. 
3.  4). 

3.  give  them  up,  that  is,  Jehovah  will  permit  his 
people  temporarily  to  suffer  until  he  raises  up  the 
Messianic  King.     The  verse  is  a  gloss. 

4.  shall  stand,  that  is,  stand  firm,  steadfast. 

unto  the  ends  of  the  earth.  The  Messiah  will 
meet  universal  acknowledgment  unto  the  ends  of  the 
earth. 


THIRD  SUNDAY  IN  ADVENT  41 


m 

(irtiirb  ^unbap  m  ^bbent 

Isaiah  40.  1-17,  27-30 
[Alternative  p.  171.] 

The  passage  is  from  a  sermon  by  an  unknown  prophet 
of  the  Exile,  now  commonly  called  Second  or  Deutero- 
Isaiah,  and  was  uttered  or  written  probably  between  B.  C. 
546  and  538,  and  spoken  as  a  word  of  comfort  and  exhorta- 
tion to  those  in  Babylonia  who  were  depressed  and  dis- 
couraged. The  first  deportation  from  Judah  had  taken 
place  in  B.  C.  597,  when  Nebuchadrezzar  carried  away 
about  eight  thousand  inhabitants,  among  whom  the  man 
Ezekiel,  afterward  a  prophet  to  his  people,  was  conspicu- 
ous. The  second  deportation  was  in  586,  when  Nebuchad- 
rezzar destroyed  Jerusalem  and  took  a  much  larger  body 
away  to  Babylonia.  Many  of  both  of  these  companies 
had  died  before  this  passage  was  spoken,  and  the  hope 
of  a  restoration  so  long  deferred  had  made  many  hearts 
sick.  To  these  came  this  thrilling  message  of  hope,  a  very 
gospel  of  good  news,  that  God  had  forgiven  his  people,  and 
would  grant  them  the  blessings  of  salvation,  and  through 
them  to  all  peoples. 

2.  to  Jerusalem.    This  is  a  synonym  for  "my  people." 

3.  the  voice  . . .  crieth.  This  is  an  angel's  voice  calling 
to  beings  of  the  same  order  to  prepare  the  road  for  the 
exile's  return.  The  phrase  has  the  effect  of  an  interjection, 
and  its  tone  might  be  given  in  English  by  "Hark! — one 
crying." 

6.  All  flesh  is  grass.  While  this  is  true  of  humanity  in 
general,  the  prophet  is  here  thinking  especially  of  Israel's 
enemies,  whose  transitory  life  he  contrasts  with  the  eter- 


42 OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

nity  of  God — the  kingdoms  of  men  pass  quickly  when  God 
intervenes. 

10.  his  reward,  probably  the  gifts  which  he  will  bestow 
on  his  restored  people. 

11.  Few  indeed  are  the  Old  Testament  verses  which 
surpass  or  even  equal  this  as  a  portrayal  of  God*s  care  for 
his  people,  his  tenderness,  gentleness,  and  solicitude. 
He  who  is  fierce  against  the  enemies  of  goodness,  is  him- 
self goodness  itself.  Who  can  read  this  verse  so  that  the 
hearer  shall  feel  it? 

12.  with  the  span,  the  distance  between  the  thumb  and 
the  little  finger  of  a  hand  when  extended. 

15.  the  isles,  properly  the  Mediterranean  coast  lands, 
then  a  general  term  for  habitable,  or  habited  lands,  and 
especially  the  far  away. 

16.  Lebanon  . . .  not  sufficient.  God  is  so  great  that  all 
the  animals  of  Lebanon  though  burned  with  all  her  trees 
would  be  a  sacrifice  insufficient  for  him. 

17.  vanity.  The  Hebrew  word  is  tohu,  which  means 
"waste,'*  and  is  used  in  Gen.  1.  2  and  there  applied  to  Chaos 
(A.  v.,  "without  form,"  R.  V.,  "waste").  It  here  signifies 
nonentity. 

27.  But  this  great  God  has  been  doubted  by  his  people, 
who  have  said,  "My  way  is  hid  from  the  Lord.  .  .  ." 

31.  mount  up  with  wings.  The  sense  is  both  beautiful 
and  attractive,  but  it  is  grammatically  doubtful.  The 
Septuagint  reads,  "shall  put  forth  pinions,"  which  may  be 
correct.  The  meaning,  then,  would  be  that  if  Israel  but 
put  her  faith  in  God  she  shall  acquire  new  powers,  shall 
fly  with  wings  like  those  of  eagles.  So  have  the  saints 
verified  it  in  many  days  since  the  prophet  spoke  as  they 
have  been  borne  upward  on  wings  of  faith  and  hope. 


FOURTH  SUNDAY  IN  ADVENT      43 


IV 

Jf  ourtlj  ^unbap  in  ^bbcnt 

Isaiah  10.  33—11.  9  and  12.  1-6 
[Alternative  p.  173.] 

The  passage  has  been  frequently  doubted  as  of  Isaiah's 
authorship  in  whole  or  in  part,  and  the  grounds  for  this 
dubiety  may  best  be  sought  in  Gray,  Isaiah^  but  whatever 
weight  these  doubts  may  have,  they  do  not  make  the  in- 
struction of  the  passage  less  or  diminish  its  value  for  public 
reading.  If  Isaiah  wrote  all  or  a  part  of  it,  it  must  belong 
to  the  period  just  before  the  year  701,  before  Sennacherib's 
invasion  of  Judah.  The  passage  I2.  i-6  belongs  to  a  later 
period  and  is  probably  not  by  Isaiah.  Its  connection  is, 
rather,  with  Isa.  11.  10-16  than  with  verses  1-9,  but  it 
is  here  pardonably  used  for  reading  as  a  hymn  of  praise 
to  follow  verse  9. 

10.  33.  lop  the  boughs.  The  Assyrian  army  has  been 
advancing  against  Jerusalem  and  is  now  very  close,  "he 
shaketh  his  hand  at  the  mount  of  the  daughter  of  Zion" 
(verse  32).  Then  his  great  host  is  compared  with  a  moving, 
menacing  forest,  and  just  when  the  danger  is  greatest 
Jehovah  moves  upon  it,  lops  its  boughs,  and  lays  it  low. 
This  is  the  beginning  of  the  overthrow  of  the  mighty  world 
power  which  had  dared  to  set  itself  against  God  and  his 
world  government.  Immediately  that  this  is  accomplished 
there  begins  the  setting  up  of  a  new  power,  even  the  Mes- 
sianic kingdom. 

11.  I.  a  shoot . . .  out  of  the  stock.  The  figure  is  that 
of  the  stump  of  a  tree  left  in  the  ground  after  the  tree 
has  fallen  or  been  felled,  and  from  the  old  stump  there 
bursts  forth  a  little  slender  twig,  the  promise  of  a 


44  OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

new  life.  There  seems  good  ground  for  the  assumption 
that  a  contrast  is  intended  with  10.  33,  for  there  the 
Assyrian  tree  is  stricken  down  to  rise  no  more,  while 
from  the  dynasty  of  Judah  there  springs  a  new  shoot 
greater  than  ever  in  its  assurance  of  power  and  help- 
fulness. This  new  shoot  is  the  Messiah,  who  comes 
from  the  dynasty  of  David,  though  his  exact  relation 
to  it  is  here  left  indefinite. 

2.  The  Messiah  is  supernaturally  endowed  for  his 
supreme  mission,  and  the  endowments  are  grouped 
into  three  of  two  each.  The  first  two — wisdom  and 
understanding — are  intellectual;  the  second  two — 
counsel  and  might — are  practical;  while  the  last  two 
— the  knowledge  and  fear  of  the  Lord — are  religious. 

3.  sight  of  his  eyes . . .  hearing  of  his  ears.  With 
the  infallible  guidance  of  his  supernatural  endow- 
ments he  shall  have  no  need  of  judging  by  the  eyes, 
that  is,  mere  appearances;  or  the  hearing  of  the  ears, 
that  is,  the  testimony  of  witnesses. 

4.  reprove.     So  R.  V.;  should  be  "decide." 

the  earth.  So  the  ordinary  text,  which  gives  no 
good  sense,  read  with  the  Septuagint  "the  violent," 
"the  ruthless,"  a  sense  also  suited  to  the  unpointed 
Hebrew  text. 

8.  asp  . . .  viper.  The  identification  of  the  species  of 
serpents  here  signified  by  the  Hebrew  words  is  quite 
doubtful,  and  fortunately  the  general  sense  is  not 
affected.  It  matters  next  to  nothing  what  particular 
serpents  are  meant.  The  English  translations  are 
little  more  than  guesses. 

9.  the  mountain;  that  is,  Zion;  but  here  the  meaning 
is  the  whole  extended  kingdom  of  the  Messiah. 

12.  1-6.  The  passage  consists  of  two  little  hymns  of 
praise,  verses  1,  2  and  3-6.  They  are  postexilic  in  origin 
and   liturgical   in   character.     Both   are   echoes   of   earlier 


FOURTH  SUNDAY  IN  ADVENT  45 

literature,  especially  of  the  splendid  hymn  of  triumph 
Exod.  15,  after  Israel's  deliverance  from  the  Egyptians  at 
the  Red  Sea,  with  which  are  interlacings  of  phrase  from 
Isa.  24-27  and  from  Psalm  105.  For  public  reading  they 
form  a  not  unsuitable  shout  of  praise  for  the  deliverance 
which  the  Messiah  is  to  bring,  and  the  beautiful  words, 
"therefore  with  joy  shall  ye  draw  water  out  of  the  wells 
of  salvation"  constitute  an  exhortation  not  unsuited  to 
his  kingdom. 


46  OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 


Ciirt£(tmafi(  Bap 

Isaiah  7.  10-14;  9.  2-7 

These  two  brief  but  beautiful  passages  have  been  sancti- 
fied by  long  use,  and  have  gathered  tenderness  and  power 
also  from  many  associations  not  only  in  church  services, 
but,  wedded  to  undying  strains  of  music  in  oratorio  and 
in  anthem,  have  come  echoing  down  the  years.  It  were 
a  sore  pity  to  read  them  in  public,  as  not  a  few  have  done, 
in  careless  haste  or  purposeless  tone.  Whatever  their 
origin  or  original  meaning,  the  centuries  have  given  them 
rich  significance.  Let  us  see,  however,  what  was  their 
place  and  time  as  the  prophet  uttered  them,  so  far  as  these 
may  now  be  determined. 

The  entire  passage  7.  1 — 9.  7  forms  the  remains  of  a  series 
of  prophecies  belonging  to  the  reign  of  Ahaz  (B.  C.  736-725). 
It  was  a  period  of  painful  anxiety  to  king  and  people,  and 
many  hearts  failed  and  not  without  much  cause.  The 
peace,  and  perhaps  the  very  existence  of  Judah  were  at 
stake  because  of  the  advance  of  an  army  of  Aramaeans 
and  Ephraimites  about  the  year  B.  C.  735,  to  attack  the 
kingdom,  dethrone  Ahaz,  and  reduce  his  land  to  depend- 
ence. It  is  easy  from  our  vantage  ground  to  speak  of  the 
king  as  weak,  or  vacillating,  or  incompetent,  and  these, 
indeed,  were  in  one  way  or  another  expressions  of  his  charac- 
ter; but  the  situation  was  dangerous,  and  places  of  recourse 
were  not  easy  then  to  find.  The  king  sought  help  by 
appealing  to  Tiglathpileser  IV  (B.  C.  745-727),  king  of 
Assyria.  As  we  now  see  the  case,  knowing  what  afterward 
was  to  follow  at  the  hands  of  the  Assyrians,  this  was  mad- 
ness as  well  as  folly.  Isaiah  opposed  the  plan  in  a  passion 
of  earnestness  on  grounds  political  as  well  as  religious. 


CHRISTMAS  DAY 47 

Isaiah  went  out  to  meet  the  king,  and  standing  on  the 
same  ground  where  thirty-four  years  later  the  representative 
of  the  Assyrian  king  Sennacherib  demanded  the  surrender 
of  the  city,  addressed  him  in  solemn  words,  urging  first 
the  wise  counsel,  *'Take  heed  and  be  quiet,  fear  not,  neither 
let  thine  heart  be  faint,"  and  giving  assurance  that  the 
coalition  against  Judah  should  not  prevail.  Then  he 
added  another  word  of  incalculable  importance,  saying, 
"If  ye  will  not  believe,  surely  ye  shall  not  be  established." 
The  meaning  of  them  is  plain  enough.  The  two  great 
words  which  express  God's  movement  toward  man  and 
man's  proper  attitude  toward  God  are  "grace"  and  "faith.'* 
Everything  which  is  comprehended  in  God's  loving  and 
yearning  approach  to  man  may  be  comprehended  and 
expressed  in  the  word  "grace,"  and  man's  duty  toward 
it  is  "faith."  He  must  accept  it  all  as  of  God  and  from 
God,  must  believe  it  and  by  that  belief  enter  into  the  pos- 
session of  it.  In  this  verse  we  have  probably  the  very 
first  expression  of  this  doctrine  of  faith  as  a  religious  prin- 
ciple. It  is  here  made  the  touchstone  for  Ahaz  of  his  destiny. 
Isaiah  has  given  the  king  a  great  assurance  that  his  king- 
dom will  not  be  destroyed  by  Syria  and  Ephraim.  This 
is  an  act  of  divine  grace.  Let  Ahaz  believe  it,  and  he 
will  be  established.  Then  Isaiah  offers  the  king  a  sign 
in  support  of  the  assurance  just  given  (Isa.  7.  5-9)  and 
Ahaz  refuses  to  ask  it,  perhaps  because  he  would  rather 
go  his  own  way  and  wished  no  religious  interference  with 
plans  already  made.     The  prophet  then  gives  the  sign. 

7.  14.  a  virgin,  or  maiden.  The  Hebrew  word  means 
a  young  woman  of  marriageable  age.  It  may  signify 
virgin,  but  does  not  necessarily  mean  virgin. 

Immanuel,  "with  us  is  God." 
In  the  second  passage  9.  2-7  the  prophet  bursts  into  a 
rapturous  strain  of  poetry,  celebrating  the  great  salvation. 
It  belongs  presumably  to  a  little  later  period  in  the  prophet's 


48  OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

mission,  but  there  is  no  conclusive  reason  for  denying  the 
authorship  to  Isaiah.  It  may  belong  to  the  body  of  teach- 
ing communicated  to  his  pupils. 

9.  4.  yoke  of  his  burden,  his  burdensome  yoke. 

staff  of  his  shoulder,  the  staff  with  which  his  enemies 
have  beaten  his  shoulders. 

day  of  Midian:  the  day  on  which  the  Midianites 
were  defeated  by  Gideon  (Judg.  6-8). 

5.  all  the  armor  of  the  armed  man  in  the  tumult. 
The  words  are  difficult,  but  the  probable  meaning  is 
that  suggested  by  Gray,  "Every  shoe  worn  in  tumult" 
(of  battle).  The  general  significance  is  that  all  the 
paraphernalia  of  war  shall  be  burned  up,  at  the  usher- 
ing in  of  the  Messiah's  kingdom. 

6.  The  child  who  shall  be  born  is  to  be  a  royal  and 
a  reigning  prince  and  his  name  consists  of  eight  words 
in  four  clauses,  of  two  each. 

(a)  Wonderful  Counsellor.  This  is  a  royal  prerog- 
ative and  is  also  a  divine  attribute.  It  is  specifically 
applied  to  God  himself  by  Isaiah  (28.  29)  and  is  a 
king's  function  in  Micah  (4.  9). 

(6)  Mighty  God.  There  is  no  sound  reason  for 
departing  from  this  translation  in  favor  of  "God  like 
Hero"  or  "Hero  God."  This  child  is  to  be  mighty 
in  a  sense  undreamt  before,  not  a  mighty  man  (1  Sam. 
14.  52),  not  a  mighty  king  (Dan.  11.  3),  but  a  mighty 
God.  (See  the  admirable  comment  by  Gray,  Isaiah, 
pp.  173,  174.) 

(c)  Everlasting  Father,  "Father  for  ever,"  the  one 
who  never  ceases  to  be  the  Father  of  his  people. 

(d)  Prince  of  Peace.  A  natural  function  of  the 
Messiah  is  to  bring  peace  (Micah  5.  5;  Zech.  9.  10), 
and  this  glorious  hope  is  in  one  form  or  another  often 
in  the  prophetic  message. 


FIRST  SUNDAY  AFTER  CHRISTMAS  49 

VI 

jfitfit  ^nnbap  ^ftet  €f^xi%tmai 

Isaiah  32.  1-5;  35.  1-10 

Having  had,  in  the  Christmas  Lesson,  a  picture  of  the 
Messiah  in  person,  it  is  fitting  that  we  come  now  to  his 
Commonwealth,  to  read  publicly  of  the  kind  and  beneficent, 
the  just  and  righteous,  kingdom  which  the  ruler  of  such 
wondrous  endowments  was  to  govern.  The  verses  1-5 
are  by  Isaiah  and  belong  to  his  characteristic  doctrine. 
The  second  passage  which  is  here  grouped  with  it  is  post- 
exilic,  and  has  echoes  of  the  second  part  of  Isaiah. 

32.  I.  a  king  shall  reign.  What  manner  of  king  he  is 
has  been  sufficiently  declared  in  the  richly  beau- 
tiful Christmas  Lesson.  Here  attention  is  focused 
upon  his  reign.  He  shall  be  surrounded  by  princes 
worthy  in  person  and  labor  to  share  the  exercise  of 
dominion  with  him. 

2.  a  man,  that  is,  each  one  of  these  princes.  They 
shall  be  utterly  unlike  the  oppressive  nobles  under 
former  kings,  but  instead  a  protection  to  the  people. 

shadow  of  a  great  [lit.,  "heavy"]  rock,  a  cooler 
shelter  than  a  tree  would  afford  against  the  heat  of 
an  Oriental  sun. 

3.  shall  not  be  dim;  rather,  shall  not  be  closed. 

4.  the  heart . . .  the  tongue.  The  hasty  are  prom- 
ised understanding,  and  they  who  had  spoken  in 
stammering  or  hesitating  words  are  henceforth  to 
speak  plainly. 

5.  vile  person.  The  fool;  compare  Nabal  as  an 
example  (1  Sam.  25). 

churl  in  the  R.  V.,  perhaps  better  "crafty,"  as  in 
margin  of  the  R.  V.,  or  "knave,"  as  Cheyne  suggests. 


50     OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

bountiful.  This  is  another  difficult  word,  only  in 
Job  34.  19.  Skinner  suggests  "lordly"  as  a  trans- 
lation. This  would  serve  well,  but  is  uncertain. 
35.  I.  rose,  uncertain.  It  may  be  the  narcissus  of  the 
springtime  growing  abundantly  on  the  plain  of 
Sharon,  or  perhaps  more  probably  the  autumn 
crocus. 

7.  in  the  habitation.  From  here  on  to  the  end  of 
the  verse  the  sense  is  obscure  and  the  text  probably 
mutilated  in  transmission. 


SECOND  SUNDAY  AFTER  CHRISTMAS        51 


VII 

S^econb  ^unbap  lifter  Cfirtsitmase 

Isaiah  42.  1-16 

The  passage  belongs  to  the  Second  Isaiah,  and  the  first 
four  verses  form  the  first  of  the  Servant  passages  (42.  1-4, 
49.  1-6,  50.  4-9,  52.  13—53.  12).     The  whole  passage  be- 
longs to  the  series  of  brilliant  and  moving  addresses,  di- 
rected to  the  exiles,  and  intended  not  only  to  encourage 
them  to  hope  for  and  expect  an  end  of  their  captivity,  but 
also  to  point  the  way  toward  a  greater  destiny  for  the 
nation.     In  this  first  Servant  passage  the  Servant  seems 
to  be  Israel,  but  it  is  Israel  glorified,  Israel  not  as  it  was 
in  captivity  but  as  it  was  called  to  be  in  its  mighty  mis- 
sion to  the  world  for  which  God  was  preparing  it.    There 
are  in  some  of  the  lines  a  wavering  between  the  people  and 
the  person,  but  the  person  is  not  so  clear  as  he  is  to  be  in 
a  later  Servant  passage  (see  especially  the  Lesson  for  Good 
Friday). 
42.  2.  When  the  Servant  begins  his   mission   he   shall 
work  unobtrusively,  not,  for  example,  as  did  Elijah; 
and  the  words  here  make  one  think  of  how  he  came 
to  recognize  the  quiet  way,  the  "still  small  voice" 
as  God*s  way  (1  Kings  19.  12f.);  and  one  must  not 
forget  the  impressive  application  made  of  these  words 
to  the  Lord  himself  (Matt.  12.  17fiF.). 

3.  smoking  flax,  margin,  "dimly  burning  wick." 
This  means  the  faint,  flickering  light  of  goodness 
and  of  the  knowledge  of  God  found  among  the  nations. 
The  Servant  will  not  put  out  that  light  however 
faint  it  be. 

4.  his  law,  his  revelation  of  the  truth.  Here  ends  the 
Servant  passage,  and  now  Jehovah  makes  a  promise. 


52  OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

6.  covenant  of  the  people,  a  very  obscure  phrase. 
Perhaps  the  people  are  conceived  as  a  covenant 
linking  God  to  the  nations,  the  Servant  embodying 
the  covenant,  which  the  nations  are  to  accept. 

9.  the  former  things.  These  which  have  been  pre- 
dicted are  now  come  to  pass.  Cyrus  has  been  pre- 
dicted, and  is  now  come.  The  new  things  are  these 
which  form  the  substance  of  the  present  prophecy. 

10.  new  song.  The  new  things  such  as  the  appear- 
ance of  the  Servant  and  the  conversion  of  the  nations 
deserve  a  new  song. 

11.  Kedar,  the  people  of  the  villages  and  Sela,  the 
people  of  the  Rock,  the  mountain  people,  let  all  sing 
together  of  Jehovah's  triumph. 

14.  I  have  long  time  holden  my  peace.    Jehovah  has 

kept  silent  while  his  people  were  in  captivity;  he 

will  now  cry  out  in  agony. 

16.  This  is  the  homebringing  of  God's  people  from 

captivity. 


FIRST  SUNDAY  AFTER  EPIPHANY  53 


VIII 
Jf irjft  ^unbap  lifter  Cpipfjanp 

Isaiah  44.  6-23 
[Alternative  p.  175.] 

This  forms  a  part  of  the  message  of  the  Second  Isaiah 
to  the  exiles  in  Babylonia.  It  begins  with  the  assertion 
of  Jehovah's  position  as  the  only  God,  and  of  him  is  Israel 
a  witness.  The  whole  passage  is  43.  1  to  44.  23,  and  in  it 
there  has  been  inserted  by  a  later  hand  the  fine  didactic 
passage  44.  9-20,  with  its  ringing  exposure  of  the  utter 
futility  of  idolatry.  That  it  is  not  by  the  same  hand  as 
the  rest  matters  nothing.  It  is  its  own  complete  justifica- 
tion and  shows  how  the  religion  of  Israel  rose  far  above 
the  neighboring  polytheistic  or  pantheistic  faiths. 

44.  6.  the  first . . .  the  last.  As  an  assertion  of  mono- 
theism this  surpasses  the  declaration  in  Isa.  43.  10. 
Remember  the  sonorous  echoes  and  expansion  of  it 
in  Rev.  1.  8,  17  and  22.  13. 

7.  The  verse  as  a  whole  is  extremely  difficult  in  the 
Hebrew  text,  and  the  ordinary  English  version 
would  scarcely  be  intelligible  if  read  aloud  to  any 
congregation.  I  have  tried  to  improve  it  somewhat 
by  following  the  Septuagint  in  the  opening  clauses. 
There  still  remains  the  difficulty  made  by  the  tem- 
poral clause,  "since  I  appointed  the  ancient  people,** 
which  must  mean  that  prophecy  has  been  continu- 
ous since  God  founded  Israel.  That  gives  a  fairly 
good  sense,  but  it  is  not  perfectly  blended  with  the 
former  clause.  The  difficulty  is  removed  by  a  con- 
jectural emendation  first  proposed  by  Oort,  and 
widely    accepted.     According    to    this,    instead    of 


54 OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

reading,  "since  I  appointed  the  ancient  people?  and 
the  things  that  are  coming,  and  that  shall  come  to 
pass  let  them  declare,'*  we  should  read,  "Who  hath 
announced  from  of  old  future  things?  and  things  to 
come  let  them  declare."  This  is  very  tempting,  but 
is,  after  all,  conjectural  and  not  based  on  the  au- 
thority of  the  ancient  versions,  and  I  have  not  quite 
the  courage  to  introduce  it  into  the  text. 
12.  strength  faileth.  He  that  makes  these  false  gods 
exhausts  himseK  at  his  labor. 

20.  feedeth  on  ashes.  The  sentence  in  Hebrew 
yields  no  satisfactory  sense  nor  has  any  successful 
proposal  been  made  for  altering  it. 


SECOND  SUNDAY  AFTER  EPIPHANY         55 


IX 

Isaiah  55.  1-13 

This  splendid  evangelical  passage  belongs  among  the 
chief  glories  of  Holy  Scripture  and  is  well  worthy  of  a  place 
with  the  richest  and  the  best.  It  may  well  be  compared 
with  John  4.  10-25;  7.  37-44;  Rev.  21.  6,  22.  17.  It  was 
addressed,  in  the  first  instance,  to  the  exiles  in  Babylonia. 
They  had  at  first  resented  sorely  their  deportation  and 
enforced  residence  in  a  strange  land  (Psa.  137),  but  many 
had  later  accepted  the  advice  of  Jeremiah  (29.  6),  and  some 
had  made  so  complete  a  change  as  to  have  become  to  alj 
practical  purposes  Babylonians,  and  had  even  lost  their 
ancient  and  far  superior  faith  (see  verse  2),  and  from  all 
the  things  which  could  never  satisfy  the  soul  the  prophet 
calls  them  back,  in  words  of  tenderness,  yet  of  power  and 
eloquence. 

55.  I.  wine  and  milk.  God  will  give  his  people  material 
prosperity,  typified  by  these  two  constituents  of  daily 
food  in  Israel,  but  symbolical  also  of  spiritual  food. 

2.  not  bread.  Let  these  exiles  not  give  themselves 
over  to  luxuries  in  an  alien  land,  but  obey  God's 
call  and  enjoy  his  bounty  at  home. 

fatness,  the  highest  spiritual  blessings.  Contrast 
Psa.  106.  15,  "And  he  gave  them  their  request;  but 
sent  leanness  into  their  souls." 

3.  everlasting  covenant.  The  early  covenant  was 
abrogated  at  the  Exile;  the  new  covenant  will  endure 
forever. 

David.  Under  the  old  covenant  it  was  promised 
that  David's  kingdom  should  never  cease  (2  Sam.  7. 


56 OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

8-16;  Psa.  18.  50),  and  this  is  to  be  realized  under 
the  new  covenant. 

5.  The  heathen  peoples  are  to  be  called,  and  shall 
come  in  haste,  to  the  redeemed  Jerusalem  to  acknowl- 
edge Jehovah  as  the  true  God. 

6-13.  A  call  to  repentance  and  an  assurance  of 
acceptance  and  of  blessing.  In  verses  8,  9  God's 
willingness  to  pardon  is  contrasted  with  man's  little 
faith  that  salvation  could  be  possible,  and  in  10,  11 
the  thought  is  presented  that  God's  Spirit  is  cease- 
lessly operating  upon  the  hearts  of  men,  as  rain 
upon  God's  vegetable  world.  Out  of  the  world  of 
exile  (verse  12)  Israel  shall  pour  forth  joyously, 
and  as  in  the  old  covenant  a  rainbow  was  the  token, 
so  in  this  new  covenant  a  blossoming  desert  shall  be 
the  name  and  sign  that  God  shall  be  ever  with  his 
redeemed  people. 

8.  my  thoughts  . . .  your  thoughts.  The  thoughts 
here  meant  are  Jehovah's  purposes  of  redemption 
which  far  surpass  any  that  men  would  dare  to  hope 
or  think.  Compare,  *'I  know  the  thoughts  that  I 
think  toward  you,  saith  the  Lord,  thoughts  of  peace, 
and  not  of  evil,  to  give  you  a  future  and  a  hope" 
(Jer.  29.  11). 

ID,  II.  God's  redemption  is  embodied  in  a  word, 
which  has  an  energy  of  its  own,  and  its  power  is  com- 
pared with  the  beneficent  operations  of  nature. 
12,  13.  This  is  the  exodus  from  Babylon,  and  as  a 
memorial  of  it  there  is  to  be  a  wonderfully  fertile 
growth  in  the  wilderness  through  which  the  returning 
exiles  pass. 


THIRD  SUNDAY  AFTER  EPIPHANY  57 


tlTiiirb  ^unba?  litter  (Cptplbanp 

HosEA  11.  1—12.  6 

[Alternative  p.  177.] 

Hose  A  began  his  public  prophetic  ministry  about  B.  C. 
746  in  the  northern  kingdom.  His  married  life  was  a  cruel 
tragedy  narrated  in  chapters  1-3,  but  he  rose  above  it,  and 
gave  forth  to  his  people  a  view  of  God  tender,  loving,  gentle, 
yet  ethically  high,  that  affords  a  most  valuable  [addition  to 
the  attribute  of  justice  and  righteousness  which  formed  the 
body  of  the  teaching  of  his  elder  contemporary,  Amos. 
The  lesson  of  the  day  is  characteristic  of  the  book,  and 
is  fittingly  described  by  George  Adam  Smith's  title  to  the 
chapter,  "The  Fatherhood  and  Humanity  of  God." 

II.  I.  my  son.  The  son  is  Israel  the  people.  In  the 
Gospel  of  Matthew  (2.  15)  it  is  applied  to  the  child- 
hood of  Jesus. 

2.  The  Hebrew  text  as  translated  in  R.  V.,  reads 
thus:  "As  they  called  them,  so  they  went  from  them.'* 
This  makes  no  sense,  and  I  have  boldly  followed  the 
Septuagint,  as  G.  A.  Smith  and  others,  and  have  sub- 
stituted "and  the  more  I  called  them,  the  farther 
they  went  from  me." 

3.  to  walk.  I  have  substituted  "to  walk,"  for  the 
R.  V.  "to  go,"  as  that  is  clearly  what  is  meant. 

healed.    In  the  childhood  of  the  race  God  healed 
their  diseases. 

4.  Here  the  figure  changes  to  the  heifer,  whose  kind 
master  eases  its  yoke  when  it  is  used  as  a  draught 
animal. 

5.  not  return.     So  R.  V.  The  negative  spoils  the  sense. 


58 OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

and  I  have   followed   the   Septuagint  and   taken  it 
as  "to  hun,"  connecting  it  with  the  preceding  verse. 

to  retixm,  that  is,  to  Jehovah. 
6,  7.  The  text  is  certainly  in  disorder  in  verse  6  and 
the  versions  do  not  help.  Emendations  have  been 
proposed,  but  I  do  not  feel  justified  in  introducing 
them.  In  even  worse  case  is  verse  7,  and  the  English 
translations  are  deceiving.  It  seemed,  therefore, 
wisest  to  omit  these  two  verses  from  public  reading, 
as  they  could  not  possibly  convey  any  sense  to  the 
hearer,  and  there  is  no  jar  when  one  passes  directly 
from  5  to  8. 

8-1 1.  The  divine  love  will  triumph  over  Israel's 
faithlessness  and  bring  them  back,  even  though  they 
deserve  to  be  destroyed,  as  were  Admah  and  Zeboim, 
cities  of  the  plain  (Deut.  29.  22,  23). 
9.  I  will  not  come  to  destroy.  This  is  an  emendation 
for  the  Hebrew  "I  will  not  enter  into  the  city" — 
which  makes  no  sense.  Verses  10  and  11  are  prob- 
ably an  addition. 

12.  This  verse  makes  no  satisfactory  sense  in  either 
A.  V.  or  R.  v.,  and  I  have  followed  the  margin  of 
the  latter  with  slight  change  partly  suggested  by  the 
Jewish  version.  The  context  shows  clearly  enough 
that  Judah  also  is  rebuked  and  not  approved,  as  the 
ordinary  translations  suggest. 
12.  3-6.  Two  episodes  from  Jacob's  life  are  here  used 
for  the  spiritual  edification  of  his  descendants. 


FOURTH  SUNDAY  AFTER  EPIPHANY         59 


XI 

Jf ourtj  feunbap  iKtter  €piptanp 

Amos  8 

Amos  was  the  first  of  the  written  prophets,  and  his  mes- 
sage was  delivered  in  Bethel,  one  of  the  chief  cities  of  the 
northern  kingdom,  during  the  reign  of  Jeroboam  II  and 
about  B.  C.  760.  The  victorious  campaigns  of  the  king 
had  restored  to  Israel's  rule  the  valuable  territory  east  of 
the  Jordan  which  had  been  lost  to  Hazael,  king  of  Damas- 
cus, during  the  reign  of  Jehu.  This  great  success  had  pro- 
duced effects  of  sure  and  dangerous  tendency  in  the  lives 
of  the  people.  A  modest  and  quiet  reliance  upon  God 
had  given  way  to  a  boastful  assurance  in  their  own  prowess, 
and  the  spiritual  religion  was  much  obscured  by  a  confidence 
in  the  power  of  sacrifices  and  offerings  to  blot  out  the  guilt 
of  sin,  and  so  open  the  way  to  their  repetition.  To  these 
people,  thus  minded,  came  Amos  from  the  southern  king- 
dom to  preach  God's  demand  for  righteousness  of  life  as 
the  sole  ground  for  the  securing  of  his  favor.  The  mes- 
sage was  most  unwelcome,  and  as  it  found  little  willing 
acceptance,  the  prophet  thunders  denunciation  upon  them, 
and  predicts  the  destruction  of  the  kingdom.  The  little 
book  is  amazingly  rich  in  illustration,  in  deft  turns  of  ex- 
pression, in  skillful  adaptations  of  the  message  to  objections 
which  were  probably  directly  voiced  by  his  hearers,  and 
in  the  variety  of  form  in  teaching.  The  lesson  of  to-day 
comes  from  a  passage  containing  a  series  of  visions  by 
which  the  prophet  enforces  his  conviction  of  the  imminence 
of  a  destructive  divine  judgment.  It  is  a  brilliant  example 
of  the  prophetic  method  of  enforcing  the  immediate  duty 
of  a  reformation. 


60 OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

1.  summer  fruit.  The  Hebrew  word  in  sound  suggests 
the  Hebrew  word  for  "end."  The  end  is  coming  soon,  just 
as  the  soft  fruits  of  summer  quickly  decay. 

2.  pass  by  them — pardon  them.  It  is  too  late  for  pardon 
or  mercy.     Judgment  is  coming. 

3.  temple.  There  was  a  temple  in  Bethel,  but  it  shall 
no  longer  be  a  place  of  joyous  praise,  but  a  place  of  mourn- 
ing for  the  numerous  dead.  It  is  the  Assyrian  invasion 
which  the  prophet  has  in  mind,  for  he  foresaw  that  it  was 
sure  to  come,  with  silence,  lit.,  "hush."  There  will  be 
too  many  dead  to  secure  an  honorable  and  ceremonious 
burial. 

4.  swallow  up — destroy  the  poor. 

5.  6.  The  new  moon,  the  first  day  of  the  month  was  ob- 
served religiously  and  as  a  holiday  with  business  suspended, 
but  the  grasping  merchants  hated  to  lose  the  opportunity 
of  gain  on  that  day  and  on  the  Sabbath.  They  would 
keep  up  religion  indeed,  but  were  unwilling  to  give  time 
for  its  service.  They  would  cheat  their  customers  by 
making  an  ephah  measure  smaller  than  it  should — with 
a  false  bottom  perhaps — and  then  again  by  changing  the 
money  balances  by  which  the  silver  payments  were  weighed, 
for  there  was  then  no  coined  money;  and  to  these  two  frauds 
there  was  added  a  third  in  the  selling  of  the  refuse  of  the 
wheat  probably  mixed  with  the  good. 

7.  God  is  a  God  of  ethical  righteousness,  and  he  will 
never  forget  these  dishonest  dealings. 

8.  The  figure  is  that  of  an  earthquake  heaving  up  the 
land. 

9.  Here  the  figure  is  of  an  eclipse,  and  it  may  have  been 
suggested  to  the  prophet  by  the  eclipse  of  June  15,  B.  C. 
763,  which  would  be  visible  at  Jerusalem  as  a  fairly  large 
partial  eclipse  (so  Driver). 

ID.  sackcloth  . . .  baldness — both  signs  of  mourning. 

II,  12.  When  these  dreadful  events  take  place  men  will 


FOURTH  SUNDAY  AFTER  EPIPHANY         61 

be  eager  for  some  word  of  God  which  now  is  spurned  and 
despised,  but  there  will  be  no  divine  message. 

13.  faint  for  thirst,  that  is,  when  the  Assyrians  begin  a 
siege  and  water  is  dij65cult  or  impossible  to  secure. 

14.  Men  swear  by  that  in  which  they  believe.  The 
people  of  Israel  were  bidden  to  swear  by  Jehovah  (Deut. 
6.  13;  10.  20).  There  was  a  "calf"  at  Samaria  and  the 
people  who  swore  by  that  were  swearing  idolatrously,  and 
showing  disrespect  to  Jehovah.  At  Dan  also  was  a  calf, 
and  the  same  applies  there.  The  calf  was  really  a  bull 
intended  to  represent  Deity  and  worshiped  originally  as  a 
symbolic  figure,  as  a  visible  object  signifying  Jehovah.  The 
practice  was  dangerous,  and  when  the  prophets  spoke 
against  it  they  sneeringly  called  it  a  "calf." 

the  way  of  Beersheba.  The  expression  is  strange,  and 
the  sense  not  quite  certain.  The  most  probable  explana- 
tion is  that  the  oath  was  "by  the  road  that  ran  to  Beer- 
sheba," which  was  a  sacred  place,  as  Mohammedans  some- 
times swear  by  the  road  to  Mecca. 


62  OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 


XII 
Jf iftj)  ^unbap  lifter  Cpipftanp 

EZEKIEL  33.   1-20 

The  prophet  Ezekiel  was  carried  into  captivity  by  Nebu- 
chadrezzar in  597,  and  about  593  was  called  to  be  a  prophet 
among  his  eight  thousand  fellow  exiles.  His  book  offers 
none  of  the  critical  problems,  so  trying  to  the  investigator, 
and  at  times  so  vexing  to  the  ordinary  reader,  which  con- 
stantly arise  in  the  book  of  Isaiah.  The  book  as  a  whole 
comes  from  Ezekiel's  own  hand.  It  can,  nevertheless,  hardly 
be  said  that  the  book  is  popular  among  Christians  generally 
or  even  widely  or  generally  read.  This  is,  however,  a 
passage  well  known  and  deservedly  popular.  It  is  the 
chapter  of  individual  responsibility,  and  no  prophet  before 
Ezekiel's  day  ever  so  clearly  enunciated  it.  The  doctrine 
is,  indeed,  implicit  or  latent  in  many  prophetic  utterances, 
and  in  other  parts  of  the  Old  Testament.  Here  it  rings 
strong  and  clear  and  well  deserves  a  public  hearing. 

4.  upon  his  own  head,  individual  responsibility.  If  the 
watchman  gives  warning,  he  has  done  his  duty.  After 
that  whatever  befalls  the  citizen  he  may  blame  no  one  but 
himself. 

7-9.  As  in  the  illustration  of  the  watchman,  so  is  it 
with  the  prophet.  If  he  give  warning  and  the  warning  is 
unheeded,  his  responsibility  is  fully  absolved. 

10.  It  is  now  necessary  to  remove  from  the  people  a  false 
impression.  They  feel  that  the  sins  of  themselves  and 
their  fathers  had  produced  the  terrible  catastrophe  of  the 
captivity,  and  that  as  this  was  so  great,  their  sins  must 
be  crushing  in  the  eyes  of  God,  and  likely  ultimately  to 
destroy   them   utterly.     From   this   sense   of   still   further 


FIFTH  SUNDAY  AFTER  EPIPHANY  63 

calamity  the  effort  is  made  to  arouse  them  by  the  beau- 
tiful assurance  from  God  given  so  tenderly  in  verse  11. 

12.  The  past  life  does  not  determine  the  future.  Right- 
eousness will  only  deliver  when  maintained  to  the  end, 
wickedness  cannot  ultimately  destroy  if  the  sinner  turn 
from  it.  This  does  not  mean  that  at  the  moment  of  judg- 
ment whatever  a  man  is  then  doing  is  the  basis  upon  which 
God  judges.  So  to  interpret  the  prophet's  great  message  is 
to  do  him  a  grievous  injustice.  The  sins  of  the  past  do 
have  a  continuing  influence,  and  a  sudden  break  with  the 
past  is  difficult,  yet  such  is  the  power  of  God's  grace  that  it 
has  often  been  achieved,  and  it  is  upon  this  great  encourage- 
ment that  the  prophet's  mind  is  focused.  He  would  hft 
his  people  out  of  despondency  into  a  great  hope. 

18-19.  These  verses  summarize  the  whole  argument. 
They  are  worthy  of  its  eloquence  and  importance,  and  the 
whole  passage  should  increase  in  us  a  reverence  for  the 
prophet  and  a  sense  of  his  greatness. 


64  OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 


XIII 

^ixtfi  ^unbap  lifter  (£pip|janp 

EzEKiEL  34.  1-16,  25-31 

[Alternative  p.  179.] 

EzEKiEL  is  in  Babylonia  among  the  eight  thousand 
exiles,  and  his  mind,  traveling  backward  over  the  past 
history  of  his  people,  meditates  upon  the  ill  treatment 
which  evil  rulers  have  given  them,  and  then  moves  for- 
ward toward  a  better  day  to  come  under  good  rulers.  He 
describes  his  people  under  the  allegory  of  a  flock  of  sheep, 
and  the  shepherds  are  the  rulers.  The  passage  is  very 
plain  and  needs  little  annotation. 
34.  2.  the  shepherds,  that  is,  the  rulers. 

the  fat.  The  Septuagint  translates  "the  milk." 
In  Hebrew  the  two  words  have  the  same  consonants. 
5.  The  allegory  is  a  picture  of  Israel's  history.  Her 
rulers  have  governed  so  ill  that  the  people  have 
become  a  prey  to  other  nations  and  are  widely  scat- 
tered. Because  of  this  failure  to  govern  and  pro- 
tect the  people,  these  governors  are  to  be  removed 
(verse  10)  and  Jehovah  himself  will  deliver  the 
people  from  their  captors  and  bring  them  home  to 
their  own  land  (verses  12-15). 
25.  covenant  of  peace,  that  is,  a  covenant  which  secures 
peace,  by  which  everything  that  might  destroy  the 
peace  is  removed. 

evil  beasts  is  used  figuratively  for  foes,  or  savage 
and  destructive  men.  The  wilderness  and  the  woods 
signify  the  uncultivated  and  waste  places  where 
there  are  no  dwellings  of  men;  even  in  such  places 
God's  people,  still  under  the  figure  of  sheep,  will  be 


SIXTH  SUNDAY  AFTER  EPIPHANY  65 

safe.     This  peaceful  situation  is  Messianic;   not   the 

Messiah  personally,  but  his  age  of  peace  is  before 

the  prophet's  mind. 

26.  showers  of  blessing,  that  is,  showers  that  bring 

blessing. 

29.  a  plantation  of  renown,   that  is,   a    plantation 

renowned  for  its  fertility  in  the  Messianic  age. 

famine.     The  land  of  Israel  had  often  experienced 
famine  but  this  will  be  true  no  more. 
31.  The  Hebrew  text  has   "are  men"  after  the  word 
pasture,  which  does  not  appear  in  the   Septuagint 
and  seems  clearly  to  be  superfluous. 


66  OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 


XIV 

^eptuage£(tma  §^mtiap 

Genesis  1.  1 — 2.  3 

This  lesson,  in  its  present  form,  came  into  being  during 
the  Exile  in  Babylonia  and  probably  about  B.  C.  500.  The 
literary  materials  which  underlie  it  are  derived  from  Baby- 
lonia, and  it  is  now  possible  to  compare  and  contrast  this 
passage  with  the  Assyrian  story  of  creation  which  had  its 
origin  early  in  Babylonia,  but  took  final  form  in  the  reign 
of  Ashurbanipal  about  B.  C.  650.  The  immeasurable 
superiority  of  this  Genesis  story  springs  at  once  to  eye 
and  mind.  The  priestly  writer  whose  high  privilege  it 
was  to  write  these  verses  has  left  far  behind  the  polytheism 
of  the  Babylonians,  and  the  nature  myths  associated  with 
it,  and  taking  only  the  literary  materials  in  selective  part 
has  used  them  as  the  vehicle  for  setting  forth  a  knowledge 
of  God  revealed  to  him  and  to  his  fellows.  The  scheme  of 
six  days  is  found  nowhere  else  and  is  probably  of  Hebrew 
origin.  It  has  no  special  significance  and  is  but  a  frame 
for  the  larger  idea,  and  that  idea  is  God.  The  writer  is 
not  focusing  attention  upon  the  works  of  creation,  but 
upon  God  the  Creator.  The  attempt  to  reconcile  the  simple 
elements  of  this  creation  story  with  the  elaborate  theories, 
hypotheses,  and  facts  of  modern  science  has  led  only  to 
peril  to  faith,  and  the  consequences  have  sometimes  been 
disastrous  to  seriously  minded  persons  whose  faith  was 
uprooted  while  still  tender  and  delicate.  It  should  ever 
be  kept  in  mind  that  the  value  of  the  narrative  lies  in  its 
power  to  reveal  God,  not  to  make  nature  and  her  works 
known.  If  we  keep  its  purpose  in  mind,  we  shall  find 
God.  If  we  attempt  to  reconcile  its  artless  phrases  with 
the  language  of  science,  we  shall  lose  God,  and  be  ever 
driven  to  new  reconciliations  as  geology  or  biology  makes 


SEPTUAGESIMA  SUNDAY 67 

progress.  If  we  look  upon  the  story  as  representative  of 
views  current  in  the  ancient  world  about  earth  and  man, 
and  are  quick  to  observe  how  the  scriptural  writer  uses 
these  as  vehicles  to  carry  forward  a  lofty  view  of  God, 
we  shall  really  come  into  the  inner  secret  of  Genesis. 

1.  I.  created.  The  word  does  not  necessarily  mean 
created  out  of  nothing.  In  use  it  is,  however,  restricted 
to  God,  and  it  is  therefore  syntactically  sound  to  trans- 
late it  by  the  word  "create,"  as  it  seems  to  point 
forward  toward  the  deeper  views  of  God  which  later 
and  larger  revelations  were  to  bring  forth. 

3-5.     The    creation    of    light.     Light    and    darkness 

were  to  the  Hebrews  essences,  and  when  light  first 

streamed   forth   it   mingled   with   the   darkness,    and 

God  now  divided  the  two. 

6-8.     The  creation  of  the  firmament,  which  is  a  solid 

body  whose  purpose  is  to  separate  the  waters  of  the 

abyss  into  two  portions,  the  one  above  the  firmament, 

and  the  other  beneath,  with  a  space  between  the  two 

for  further  works  of  creation.     From  the  upper  body 

of  water  comes  the  rain,  while  from  the  lower  body 

the  ocean  streams  forth  (Job  38.  8-11). 

9-13.     This  is  the  third  day,  and  to  it  are  ascribed 

two  works:    first,   the  making  of  the   dry  land,   by 

draining  off  the   waters   into  the   sea,   and,   second, 

the  creation  of  vegetation. 

14-19.  The  creation  of  the  heavenly  luminaries. 

20-23.  The  creation  of  the  animals  of  the  water  and 

the  birds  of  the  air. 

24-31.  To  the  sixth  day  two  works  are  assigned. 

2.  1-3.  The  works  of  creation  are  finished  and  God  rests. 
So  also  must  man  at  the  end  of  every  week.  The 
origin  of  the  Sabbath  is  found  in  the  divine  act  of 
creation  and  not,  as  in  Deuteronomy  (5.  12-15),  as 
an  act  of  mercy  and  good  will  to  servants. 


68  OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 


XV 

Genesis  3 

This  lesson  belongs  to  the  writings  of  the  Judaistic  narra- 
tor (J)  and  was  probably  composed  about  B.  C.  850.     It 
gives  in  a  symbolic  form  an  account  of  man's  temptation, 
his  fall  from  rectitude,  the  origin  of  sin  and  its  insidious 
advances,   and   in  this  early  case   its   triumph.     But  the 
writer   goes  on  to  teach  that  this  which  thus  began  was 
to  be  an  age-long  struggle,  that  to  every  man  and  woman 
temptation  was  sure  to  come,  and  that  at  last  the  victory 
was  to  lodge  with  man  and  not  with  temptation  (3.  15). 
3.  I.  the  serpent.     Here  only  one  of  the  animals  which 
were   introduced   to   man.     It   has   in  the   beginning 
some  sort  of  erect  attitude,  which  it  afterward  loses. 
In  this  passage  it  is  not  identified  with  the  Evil  One, 
that  idea  being  a  later  development  in  the  Hebrew 
religion  and  appearing  first  in  the  apocryphal  Book 
of    Wisdom   (2.   23f.) — In    this    passage    the    serpent 
represents  the  power  of  temptation,  of  which  it  is  the 
symbol,  or  the  expression,  or  the  type.     The  serpent 
here  puts  forward  in  an  artful  manner  the  advantages 
of  breaking  the  divine  command,  and  even  more  art- 
fully suggests  that  there  is  no  real  danger  in  doing  it. 
As  revelation  proceeds  the  devil  represents  the  methods 
and  the  powers  which  are  here  in  the  serpent's  power, 
until  at  length  our  Lord  is  manifested  that  he  might 
destroy  the  works  of  the  devil  (1  John  3.  8).     There 
is   no   dualism.     God   and   the   devil   are   not   equal. 
^'Greater  is  He  that  is  in  you  than  he  that  is  in  the 
world"  (1  John  4.  4). 


SEXAGESIMA  SUNDAY 


2,  3.  The  woman  corrects  the  serpent,  and  shows 
her  sense  of  the  importance  and  preciseness  of  the 
prohibition,  which  the  serpent  follows  up  (verses  4,  5), 
by  suggesting  an  unworthy  motive  on  God's  part, 
and  coupling  with  that  a  promise  of  great  intellectual 
gain. 

7.  After  both  had  eaten  they  passed  suddenly  out  of 
innocence  into  knowledge,  typifying  the  change  in  all 
mankind  from  the  innocence  of  childhood  slowly 
accomplished  by  the  flight  of  time  and  not,  as  here, 
at  once. 

8.  voice,  rather  "sound."  They  heard  the  footsteps 
of  God.  The  representation  is,  of  course,  anthro- 
pomorphic, and  no  other  was  or  is  possible  without 
the  danger  of  slipping  into  pantheism. 

cool;  lit.,  the  breeze,  or  wind  of  the  day.  After 
the  day's  heat  in  Oriental  countries  comes  the  evening 
breeze,  and  man  may  come  out  of  his  house. 
12,  13.  From  the  man  and  the  woman  confession  is 
compelled,  as  they  were  moral  agents,  but  no  such 
demand  is  made  of  the  serpent,  as  it  was  only  an  animal. 

14.  dust.  The  serpent  is  not  to  live  by  eating  dust. 
It  crawls  upon  the  ground,  and  may  therefore  be  sup- 
posed to  swallow  some  dust  as  animals  that  live  above 
the  ground  do  not. 

15.  This  splendid  verse  has  long  been  called  the 
Protevangelium,  and  so  it  is.  We  must  not  ask  too 
much  of  it,  or  read  a  whole  system  of  Christian  theol- 
ogy into  it,  but  neither  should  we  strip  it  of  all  meaning. 

bruise.  The  meaning  is  doubtful,  but  no  better 
translation  has  yet  been  suggested.  The  general  sense 
of  the  verse  is  clear,  however  dubious  may  be  the 
exact  rendering  of  this  word. 

The  verse  holds  out  a  hope  of  victory  in  the  cease- 
less  antagonism   between  the   moral   nature  of    man 


70 OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

and  the  power  of  temptation  which  the  serpent  repre- 
sents, but  victory  is  not  definitely  promised,  but  only 
hinted  in  the  very  conditions  of  the  contest. 
i6.  Woman's  sentence  is  labor  in  childbearing,  and  the 
domination,  practiced,  in  the  ancient  Orient  especially, 
by  men.  It  is  not  that  her  physical  nature  was  to 
be  changed  as  a  result  of  her  sin.  We  must  not  force 
modern  physiological  knowledge  upon  this  ancient 
writer.  His  interest  was  moral  and  religious,  and  he 
is  using  his  material  accordingly. 

17-19.  The  sentence  upon  man  is  not  work,  but  the 
laboriousness  of  his  work.     Man  had  to  work  before; 
he  will  now  work  at  a  great  disadvantage. 
20.  Eve,  Hebrew  Khawwdh,   "life."      She  is  so  called 
because  all  human  life  originates  with  her. 
22-24.  Man  was  created  mortal.     It  is  implied,  though 
not  quite  stated,  that  had  he  remained  innocent,  he 
might  have  been  permitted  to  eat  of  the  tree  of  life 
and  become  immortal.     This  cannot  be  granted  a  sin- 
ful being,  and  he  is  therefore  expelled  from  Paradise. 
This  is  indeed  a  rich,  fruitful,  eloquent,  and  noble  passage, 
and  well  deserves  a  public  reading,  year  after    year  in  the 
churches,  and  such  an  exposition  of  its  significance  as  a 
lecture  or  prayer  meeting  might  afford.     A  sound  under- 
standing of  its  age  and  its  simple  symbolism  should  enhance 
its  value  to  every  thoughtful  man,  and  not  strip  it  of  any 
religious  power  and  moral  value. 


QUINQUAGESIMA  SUNDAY  71 


XVI 

(©umquasesstma  ^unbap 

Genesis  6.  5-8,  13-22;  7.  23,  24;  9.  8-17 

The  story  of  the  Deluge  belongs  to  mankind  in  a  very 
peculiar  way.  Some  narrative  of  a  flood,  local  or  extended, 
seems  to  be  found  almost  everywhere.  The  origin  of  the 
biblical  account  is  traceable  to  the  Babylonian  flood  legends 
which  had  their  origin  in  remote  antiquity,  and  were  founded 
originally  upon  some  great  cataclysm  of  nature  in  the 
Tigris-Euphrates  valley.  After  many  literary  vicissitudes 
the  story  reached  us  in  a  recension  belonging  to  the  library 
of  Ashurbanipal.  How  or  when  or  in  what  stage  it  passed 
to  the  Hebrews  has  been  the  subject  of  much  speculation, 
but  without  any  sure  result.  The  Hebrew  Judaistic  writer 
(J)  about  B.  C.  850  wrote  its  earliest  form,  and  the  book 
of  Genesis  now  preserves  his  narrative  with  portions  de- 
rived from  the  priestly  story  (P)  written  in  Babylonia 
probably  about  B.  C.  500.  The  two  strands  have  been 
separated  by  modern  investigation,  and  shown  to  be  differ- 
ent in  many  particulars.  They  both,  however,  have  a 
religious  value  immeasurably  superior  to  their  Babylonian 
relatives.  They  are  made  the  vehicle  for  lofty  views  of 
God  never  attained  by  the  peoples  of  the  Tigris-Euphrates 
valley. 
6.  6.  repented  . . .  grieved.  These  strong  anthropopathic 
expressions  are  necessary  for  man*s  comprehension 
of  God  as  a  person,  not  as  a  force  or  as  a  power. 

13.  is  come  before  me,  that  is,  is  resolved  upon. 

14.  ark:  tebdhy  an  Egyptian  word  used  only  of  Noah's 
ark  and  of  the  ark  in  which  Moses  was  hidden  (Exod. 
2.  3,  5). 


72 OLD  TESTAINIENT  LESSONS 

gopher.     Only  found  here,   and   of  uncertain   sig- 
nification, perhaps  cypress. 

pitch,   that   is,   bitumen,    still   used   for   the   same 
purpose  in  the  Tigris-Euphrates  valley. 
15.  The  ark,  as  here  described,  would  be  about  450 
feet  long,  75  feet  wide,  and  45  feet  high  (so  Driver). 
18.  my  covenant.     This   is   the  covenant   which   fol- 
lowed in  9.  8-17. 

9.  8.  my  covenant.  It  is  not  only  with  Noah,  but 
with  all  men  and  all  animals. 

12.  token  of  the  covenant.  A  covenant  must  have 
some  sign  as  a  guarantee,  and  for  this  purpose  God 
appoints  the  rainbow.  Whenever  it  appears  man 
shall  know  that  God  remembers  and  will  keep  his 
covenant. 


FIRST  SUNDAY  IN  LENT  73 


XVII 

Jf  irsit  ^unbap  in  Hent 

Jeremiah  8.  4-22;  9.  1 
[Alternative  p.  181.] 

The  lesson  is  taken  from  a  part  of  Jeremiah's  teaching 
uttered  early  in  the  reign  of  Jehoiakim  (B.  C.  608-604) 
and  is  devoted  to  a  denunciation  of  Judah's  disobedience 
and  sin. 

8.  4.  fall .  .  .  not  rise.  When  a  man  falls  he  rises  again, 
but  Judah  is  unnatural;  she  falls  but  does  not  rise; 
in  other  words,  she  continually  persists  in  her  evil  way. 

7.  The  instinct  of  the  animals  sets  the  time  for  their 
appearance  in  the  proper  season.  "What  instinct  is 
for  the  beast,  that  religion  is  for  man"  (Cornill). 

8.  Israel  now  had  the  Law  found  in  621  in  the  reign 
of  Josiah,  but  already  there  were  falsifications  of  it 
or  regulations  which  destroyed  its  value,  or  dimin- 
ished men's  reverence  for  it  or  use  of  it.  This  Law 
book  was  our  book  of  Deuteronomy,  or  its  kernel, 
chapters  12-26. 

13.  grapes  . . .  figs.  The  state  of  the  people  is  pre- 
sented under  the  figure  of  vines  and  trees  which  are 
barren,  producing  no  fruit.  For  an  interesting  and 
beautiful  parallel  see  Isa.  5.  1-7,  and  for  a  contrast 
compare,  "For  he  shall  be  as  a  tree  planted  by  the 
waters,  and  that  spreadeth  out  his  roots  by  the  river, 
and  shall  not  fear  when  heat  cometh,  but  his  leaf 
shall  be  green;  and  shall  not  be  careful  in  the  year  of 
drought,  neither  shall  cease  from  yielding  fruit" 
(Jer.  17.  8). 

and  the  things  . . .  from  them.    This  whole  clause 
is  in  Hebrew  expressed  by  three  words,  and  the  trans- 


74  OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

lation  of  them  is  doubtful.  Furthermore,  they  are 
entirely  omitted  in  the  Septuagint  and  the  Syriac 
Hexaplar  version,  and  these  omissions  give  good 
reason  to  suspect  the  Hebrew  text.  The  Jewish 
translation  gives  as  the  meaning,  "And  I  gave  them 
that  which  they  transgress."  This  is  ingenious,  gives 
an  interesting  sense,  but  is  doubtful. 
14  and  15  are  spoken  by  the  people  who  are  in  dis- 
tress and  in  flight  from  invaders. 

water  of  gall.     Gall  is  a  plant,  not  yet  identified, 
possessing  a  bitter  flavor. 

16.  Dan  is  the  extreme  northern  part  of  the  territory 
of  Israel,  and  from  that  quarter  the  enemy  is  heard 
approaching. 

17.  adders.  The  particular  kind  of  serpent  here 
meant  is  not  known. 

18.  This  is  an  expression  of  the  prophet's  grief  over 
his  people. 

19.  He  is  carried  forward  in  thought  to  the  time 
when  the  people  shall  be  in  exile. 

20.  This  is  quite  likely  a  popular  proverb.  The  har- 
vest would  be  from  April  to  June,  while  by  "summer" 
is  meant  the  later  period  in  which  the  fruits  are  gar- 
nered. If  the  crops  failed  in  harvest,  there  was  still 
a  hope  in  the  fruits.     If  both  failed,  famine  was  certain. 

9.  I.  This  verse  really  belongs  to  chapter  8.  The  di- 
vision which  assigns  it  to  chapter  9  is  unfortunate.  It 
expresses  the  prophet's  deep  sorrow  at  the  sufferings  of  his 
people. 


SECOND  SUNDAY  IN  LENT  75 


XVIII 

^econti  ^unbap  in  Hent 

Genesis  22.  1-19 

The  narrative  comes  from  the  Elohistic  or  Ephraimistic 
writer  and  was  set  down  probably  about  B.  C.  800  and 
later  incorporated  in  the  Pentateuch.  It  has  always  been 
deeply  admired  by  all  who  have  had  any  real  interest  in 
literary  or  religious  literature.  Nothing  else  preserved 
from  this  writer's  work  equals  it  in  simplicity,  restrained 
emotion  or  the  delicacy  of  handling  a  tragic  situation. 
The  appreciation  of  the  beauty  and  moving  pathos  of  the 
story  is  far  more  easy  than  its  explanation.  This  is,  however, 
no  place  for  the  discussion  of  certain  modern  theories  which 
propose  for  it  an  setiological  meaning  as  an  explanation  of 
animal  for  human  sacrifices.  For  our  purpose  we  are  quite 
justified  in  taking  it  in  its  simple  religious  significance. 
Here  is  a  man,  Abraham,  surrounded  by  a  society  in  which 
child  sacrifice  was  usual  and  ordinary.  How  easy  it  was, 
under  the  taunts  of  neighbors,  or  in  the  secret  of  his  own 
meditation,  for  Abraham  to  conclude  that  his  God  also 
demanded  his  best,  his  only  son.  On  the  very  moment 
of  accomplishing  this  awful  deed  his  hand  is  stayed, 
and  it  is  made  clear  to  his  intelligence  that  God's  real  de- 
mand is  the  surrender  of  his  will.  He  has  made  that  sur- 
render, and  God's  joy  in  him  is  expressed  in  a  glorious 
promise. 

22.  I.  God  did  prove.  The  translation  is  a  great  im- 
provement upon  the  Authorized  Version  which 
translates  "tempt."  God  does  not  "tempt"  men 
(see  James  1.  13).  He  does  try  men  to  test  their 
faith  and  obedience.  See,  for  example,  1  Cor.  10.  13; 
Heb.  11.  17;  1  Pet.  1.  6,  7. 


76 OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

and  said  unto  him,  perhaps  in  a  dream. 

2.  Moriah.  The  site  has  never  yet  been  satis- 
factorily identified. 

3.  rose  early.  He  would  act  at  once.  Had  he 
waited,  courage  might  have  failed  him  and  disobedi- 
ence triumphed. 

4.  afar  off.  The  site  was  then  upon  a  height  visible 
from  a  distance.  After  they  had  traveled  two  days, 
on  the  "third"  it  was  visible.  They  will  have  cov- 
ered thirty  or  forty  miles. 

6.  *'The  boy  carries  the  heavier  load,  the  father  the 
more  dangerous:  knife  and  fire"  (Gunkel). 

7.  This  is  the  pathetic  climax.  The  boy*s  childish 
curiosity,  the  father's  grim  determination. 

8.  God  will  provide.  It  is  this  which  makes  the 
possible  typical  application  to  Christ.  See  how  the 
New  Testament  writers  do  it  in  John  1.  29,  36; 
1  Pet.  1.  19;  Rev.  5.  12. 

14.  "In  the  mount  of  the  Lord  it  shall  be  provided." 
The  Hebrew  text  is  diflScult  and  yields  no  sense 
suited  to  the  context,  nor  do  the  versions  supply  any 
reasonable  substitute.  If  we  would  be  perfectly 
honest  with  ourselves,  we  must  admit  this,  and 
failing  any  worthy  conjectural  emendation  must 
read  the  text  as  the  R.  V.  has  translated  it. 
18.  be  blessed;  rather,  "bless  themselves,"  the  idea 
being  that  all  successive  generations  shall  look  back 
upon  Abraham  as  blessedness  incarnate,  and  when 
they  would  wish  a  blessing  upon  any  one  would  say, 
"May  God  make  thee  like  Abraham." 


THIRD  SUNDAY  IN  LENT  77 


XIX 

tlTfitrb  ^unbap  tn  Htnt 

Genesis  37.  3-12,  17-35 

This  lesson  introduces  reader  and  hearer  to  the  most 
beloved,  as  well  as  the  best  known  and  most  delightful  of 
Old  Testament  biographies.  The  story  is  of  Joseph  and 
his  unparalleled  providential  career.  It  is  continued  to 
the  end  of  the  book  (with  exceptions  in  chapters  38  and 
49.  1-28)  and  so  simple,  yet  so  thrilling  is  the  story,  and 
so  brilliantly  and  skillfully  yet  so  restrainedly  is  it  told 
that  one  might  well  long  for  the  pleasure  of  reading  the 
whole  of  it  in  public  instead  of  this  introductory  passage 
only,  beautiful  and  instructive  though  it  is.  The  story 
of  Joseph  began  to  be  written  by  the  Judaistic  writer  (J) 
about  B.  C.  850,  and  by  the  Ephraimistic  (E)  about  800, 
and  the  two  were  woven  into  one  perhaps  during  the  reign 
of  Hezekiah  when  there  would  appear  to  have  been  con- 
siderable literary  activity.     (Compare  Prov.  25.  1.) 

37.  3.  coat  of  many  colors;  rather,  a  "tunic  of  palms 
and  soles,"  by  which  is  meant  a  garment  reaching 
to  the  hands  and  feet. 

4.  loved  him.     The  emphatic  pronoun,  loved  him. 

5.  9.  The  double  dream  is  intended  to  indicate 
the  certainty  of  fulfillment. 

12.  in  Shechem.  There  was  good  pasturage  in  the 
plain  east  of  Shechem,  and  better  at  Dothan,  fifteen 
miles  further  north. 

25.  from  Gilead.  The  regular  trade  route  from 
Gilead  still  crosses  the  plain  north  of  Dothan. 

spicery,  probably  gum  tragacanth;  balm,  a  resinous 
gum,  probably  the  exudation  of  the  mastic  tree,  and 
specially  associated  with  Gilead   (Gen.  43.   11;  Jer. 


78 OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

8.  22);  myrrh,  that  is,  ladanum,  the  fragrant  gum 
of  a  species  of  cistus  rose.  These  gums  were  highly 
esteemed  in  Egypt  for  medicinal,  liturgical,  and 
embalming  purposes. 

28.  twenty  pieces  of  silver.  The  price,  about  twelve 
to  thirteen  dollars,  was  two  thirds  of  that  of  an  or- 
dinary (adult)  slave  (Exod.  21.  32),  but  may  have 
been  such  as  would  be  usual  for  a  youth.  Compare 
Lev.  27.  5. 

30.  The  child.  The  Hebrew  word  yeled  would  prop- 
erly be  used  for  a  small  boy,  and  is  frequently  so  used 
in  the  Bible. 

33.  an  evU  beast,  Jacob  draws  at  once  the  conclusion 
which  they  desired.  They  had  not  spoken,  but  acted 
a  lie,  and  the  old  man  was  readily  deceived. 
35.  the  grave.  The  Hebrew  is  Sheoly  the  abode  of 
the  dead,  which  corresponds  to  the  Greek  Hades,  Acts 
20.  27.  Jacob  here  means  not  only  that  he  shall  die 
mourning,  but  even  enter  mourning  into  Sheol.  There 
the  son  will  meet  the  father  and  behold  his  grief.  It 
must  be  remembered  that  the  Hebrew  view  of  the 
place  of  the  dead  was  gloomy  at  the  best.  The  glory 
of  heaven  and  its  joys  is  a  later  idea,  and  in  its  full- 
ness Christian. 


FOURTH  SUNDAY  IN  LENT  79 


XX 

jf  ourtift  S>ttnliap  in  Hent 

Exodus  3.  1-15 

After  Moses  had  slain  an  Egyptian  who  was  oppressing 
an  Israelite,  he  had  fled  to  the  wilderness  of  Midian  and 
lived  there,  according  to  the  priestly  records,  forty  years, 
which  means  simply  a  generation.  When  the  divinely 
providential  plans  for  Israel's  rescue  from  the  intolerable 
bondage  in  Egypt  were  mature,  it  was  necessary  to  prepare 
Moses  for  his  great  task,  and  in  this  passage  we  have  the 
story  of  his  call  to  duty  in  behalf  of  God  and  men  by  an 
immediate  revelation  of  God  to  him.  In  its  present  form 
it  is  composed  of  passages  taken  from  the  Judaistic  writer 
(J)  about  B.  C.  850,  and  the  Ephraimistic  (E)  about  B.  C. 
800,  and  the  resulting  narrative  belongs  to  the  greatest 
utterances  of  Holy  Scripture.  The  dialogue  is  in  the  words 
of  men,  "seen,"  "heard,"  "come  down,"  for  there  is  no 
other  way  by  which  its  lesson  could  be  brought  home  to 
men,  but  we  shall  do  well  to  conceive  of  this  great  revela- 
tion of  God  as  having  come,  as  others  like  it,  to  the  inner 
eye  and  ear,  to  the  mind  and  heart  of  Moses  as  he  com- 
muned with  God  in  lonely  and  silent  abstraction  from  the 
ordinary  affairs  of  life.  So  interpreted  it  loses  nothing  of 
reality;  it  is  still  actual,  it  describes  a  true  contact  between 
the  soul  of  a  great  man  and  his  God. 

3.  I.  back  of  the  wilderness,  that  is,  the  western  portion, 
as  distinguished  from  the  eastern  or  front.  The  site 
cannot  be  identified,  but  was  probably  somewhere  in 
the  region  of  Sinai.  The  region  is  called  Sinai  by  J, 
and  Horeb  by  E,  and  there  is  no  sufficient  reason  yet 
brought  forward  for  doubtmg  that  the  same  place 
is  intended. 


80  OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

Mountain  of  God,  that  is,  a  sacred  mountain,  a 
mountain  held  to  have  been  sacred  long  before  the 
days  of  Moses.  Sinai  is  derived  from  Sin,  the  name 
of  the  moon  god  in  Babylonian. 

2.  angel  of  Jehovah.  "The  angel  of  Jehovah  is  a 
temporary,  but  full,  self-manifestation  of  Jehovah,  a 
manifestation  usually,  at  any  rate,  in  human  form, 
possessing  no  distinct  and  permanent  personality,  as 
such,  but  speaking  and  spoken  of,  sometimes  as  Jehovah 
himself  (e.  g.,  v.  4a  here,  comp.  with  v.  2;  Gen.  16. 
10,  13;  31.  11,  13;  Jud.  6.  12,  14;  13.  21f.),  and  some- 
times as  distinct  from  him  (e.  g..  Gen.  16.  11;  19.  13, 
21,  24;  21.  17;  Nu.  22.  31)"  (Driver). 

flame  of  fire.  This  was  a  frequent  form  of  divine 
manifestation. 

6.  God  of  thy  father.  It  was  no  new  God  whom  Moses 
was  to  introduce  to  Israel,  but  the  same  God  who  had 
manifested  himself  to  Abraham. 

8.  honey.  The  word  includes,  with  the  product  of 
the  bee,  also  the  widely  used  Oriental  condiment  now 
called  in  Arabic  dibs,  which  is  made  by  boiling  grape 
juice  into  a  dark  brown  and  intensely  sweet  syrup. 

Hittite,  the  name  of  a  powerful  and  widely  extended 
people  now  known  by  the  recovery  of  hundreds  of 
monuments,  inscriptions,  and  inscribed  tablets,  and 
represented  by  one  of  their  branches  in  the  northern 
part  of  Canaan,  and  by  still  another  in  the  neighbor- 
hood of  Hebron. 

Amorite.  Here  probably  a  general  designation  of 
the  early  inhabitants  of  the  country  when  the  Hebrews 
entered  it,  and  practically  synonymous  with  Canaanite. 

Perizzite.  Not  certainly  identified  as  any  particular 
people.  The  word  may  perhaps  come  from  perdzly 
"country  folk,"  and  so  mean  not  a  tribe  or  clan,  but 
merely  "peasantry." 


FOURTH  SUNDAY  IN  LENT  81 

Jebusite,  a  minor  tribe  who  held  Jerusalem  until 
expelled  by  David. 

II,  12.  Moses   feels   himself   unfitted   to   so   great   a 

task,  and  is  assured  of  the  divine  presence  and  support. 

13-22.  The  second  difficulty  brought  forward  by  Moses 

is  that  he  does  not  know  God's  name. 

14.  I  am  that  I  am,  or,  I  will  he  that  I  will  he.     This 

is  intended  as  an  interpretation  of  the  divine  name 

Yahweh  (Jehovah)  which  in  its  usual  form  is  the  third 

person  imperfect  of  a  verb  and  means  ^^he  will  he.'' 

It  is  here  put  into  the  first  person,  as  Jehovah  is  the 

speaker.     The  meaning,  then,  is  that  Jehovah  will  he 

to  Moses   and   his   people,  what  he  will  he,  and  that 

signifies  that  his  nature  is  too  great  and  high  then 

to  be  completely  described,  but  it  will  be  gradually 

unfolded  as  the  people  intrust  themselves  to  him. 

I  am,  or,  better,  /  will  he. 

15.  this  is  my  name.    This  remaining  part  of  the 

verse,  including  the  parallel  clause,  has,  as  Driver  has 

pointed  out,  almost  a  poetical  tone,  and  indeed  the 

Hebrew  phrase  "to  all  generations"  occurs  elsewhere 

only  in  a  poetical  passage.     (Prov.  27.  24.) 


8^  OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 


XXI 

Jf iftij  ^unbap  m  Hent 

Exodus  33.  7-23 

The  lesson  is  taken  from  the  chapters  32-34,  which  are 
given  over  to  incidents  connected  with  the  episode  of  the 
Golden  Calf — ^the  sacred  bull  image  intended  to  represent 
Jehovah — and  this  particular  passage  partly  from  the 
Judaistic  writer  about  B.  C.  850,  and  the  Ephraimistic 
about  B.  C.  800.  The  connection  between  the  mention 
of  the  Tent  of  Meeting  and  the  rest  of  the  narrative  is 
not  clear,  but  it  has  its  own  interest,  and  there  is  no  sufficient 
reason  for  separating  it  in  this  lesson  from  the  impressive 
and  beautiful  story  of  Moses'  search  for  God's  visible 
presence. 

33.  7.  tent  of  meeting,  that  is,  the  tent  where  Moses 
met  God,  and  to  which  all  who  would  seek  God  must 
resort. 

9.  the  pillar  of  cloud.  The  symbol  of  Jehovah's 
presence. 

10.  worshiped — did  obeisance;  bowed  themselves. 

12.  whom  thou  wilt  send.  It  had  been  promised 
that  an  angel  should  be  sent  (32.  34,  33.  2).  The 
question,  then,  would  seem  to  mean,  which  angel 
was  to  be  chosen. 

by  name,  that  is,  individually,  to  know  by  name 
is  to  know  intimately. 

13.  In  spite  of  all  the  assurances  already  given  him 
Moses  still  longs  for  a  deeper  knowledge  of  God, 
and  further  assurance  that  God's  grace  would  be 
with  him  to  answer  future  prayers. 

14.  give  thee  rest,  namely,  in  the  promised  land  of 
Canaan. 


FIFTH  SUNDAY  IN  LENT  83 

15.  The  meaning  is  that  if  God  will  not  go  with  them, 
they  prefer  to  remain  in  the  neighborhood  of  Sinai, 
where  was  the  mountain  of  God  (Exod.  3.  1);  com- 
pare the  phrase  **brought  you  unto  myself"  (Exod. 
19.  4);  that  is,  to  Jehovah's  abiding  place  at  Sinai. 

18.  Moses  pleads  for  a  further  revelation  of  God, 
show  me  thy  glory^  that  is,  thy  majesty. 

19.  goodness,  goodliness  or  comeliness,  the  outward 
expression  of  God*s  perfection. 

the  name  of  the  Lord.  We  may  well  compare 
with  this  God's  revelation  of  his  name  to  Moses 
(Exod.  3.  14).  Here  the  name  is  further  expounded. 
Jehovah  (Yahweh)  is  a  God  who  knows  how  to  be 
gracious  to  whom  he  will  be  gracious,  even  though 
men  sin  against  him. 

20.  man  shall  not  see  me  and  live.  This  is  a  fre- 
quently expressed  idea  in  the  Old  Testament,  that 
no  man  could  see  God,  certainly  not  in  his  full  glory. 
See  Isa.  6.  5  and  compare  also  Gen.  32.  30,  Deut. 
4.  33,  Judg.  6.  22ff.,  and  13.  22. 

23.  my  back.  Not  the  face  of  God  does  Moses  see, 
but,  as  the  Hebrew  says  literally,  "my  hinder  parts." 
Let  us  not  be  hasty  to  make  this  anthropomorphic.  It 
means  really  the  "after  glow"  which  Jehovah  leaves 
behind  him,  as  a  suggestion  of  what  the  full  glory 
must  be.  Gregory  Naz.  calls  it  "all  the  indications 
of  himself  which  He  has  left  behind  him."  Compare 
the  beautiful  passage  Wisdom  13.  1-9,  and  the  fine 
phrase  in  Job  26.  14. 


84  OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 


XXII 

Zechariah  8.  14-23;  9.  9,  10 

The  prophet  Zechariah  was  a  contemporary  of  Haggai, 
and  his  earliest  work  was  an  effort  to  induce  the  people 
to  rebuild  the  Temple,  which  had  been  destroyed  by  Nebu- 
chadrezzar in  B.   C.   586.     The  earliest  utterance  of  the 
prophet  is  dated  in  November,  B.  C.  520  (Zech.  1.  1),  and 
the  latest  (7.  1)  on  December  4,  519.     The  first  eight  chap- 
ters of  the  present  book  alone  belong  to  this  prophet,  while 
chapters  9-14  are  to  be  ascribed  to  an  unknown  prophet 
living  in  the  Greek  period  and  probably  between  B.   C. 
333  and  175.     For  this  lesson  a  few  verses  are  taken  from 
Zechariah   to   introduce   the   Messianic   passage   from   the 
Second  Zechariah. 
8.  14.  As  I  thought  to  do  evil.     Zechariah  is  addressing 
the  returned  exiles,  and  reminds  them  that  God  had 
inflicted  upon  them  that  captivity  as  a  punishment 
for  the  sins  of  the  nation,  but  that  is  now  past  and 
they  need  fear  no  more  if  only  they  meet  the  moral 
conditions  which  God  imposes  (verses  16,  17). 
19.  The  fasts  here  mentioned  are  commemorative  of 
the  terrible  days  of  Jerusalem's  sufferings  at  the  hands 
of  the  Chaldeans.     The  fourth  month,  ninth  day,  was 
the  day  when  Jerusalem's  walls  were  breached,  and 
the  Chaldeans  entered   the   city   after  Zedekiah  had 
fled  (2  Kings  25.  3-5;  Jer.  52.  6-8).     The  fijth  month, 
tenth  day,  brought  the  destruction  of  the  city,  palace 
and  Temple  by  fire  (Jer.  52.  12,  13).     In  the  seventh 
month  Gedaliah  was   murdered  (2  Kings  25.  23,  25; 
Jer.  40.  5,  7;  41.  1,  2),  and  the  tenth  month,  tenth  day 


PALM  SUNDAY  85 


was  the  anniversary  of  the  beginning  of  the  siege  of 
Jerusalem,  a  year  and  a  half  earlier  than  the  time 
of  the  breaching  of  the  walls  (2  Kings  25.  1;  Jer.  52.  4). 
These  were  all  anniversaries  of  sad  events,  but  the 
sting  had  been  taken  from  them  by  the  mercies  of  God 
and  the  influences  of  time,  and  they  were  now  to  be 
cheerful  feasts.  The  dark  days  are  forever  past  and 
so  great  will  be  Judah's  prosperity  and  joy  that  many 
peoples  and  strong  nations  will  come  to  seek  the 
favor  of  Jehovah,  who  hath  wrought  such  marvels  for 
his  people. 

21.  Let  us  go.  The  nations  are  urging  one  another 
to  make  the  pilgrimage  to  Judah.  Compare  Isa. 
2.  3  and  again  in  Mic.  4.  2. 

Q-io.  The  Messianic  king  enters  his  capital  triumph- 
antly riding  not  as  a  warrior  on  a  horse,  but  as  a  man 
of  peace  upon  an  ass.  See  the  New  Testament  use 
of  the  passage  in  Matt.  21.  5;  John  12.  15.  The  ful- 
fillment is  not  temporal  but  spiritual,  not  a  conqueror 
of  men  by  the  arts  of  war,  but  the  king  of  peace. 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 


XXIII 

<§oob  Jf ribap 

Isaiah  52.  13—53.  12 

This  is  the  last  and  by  far  the  greatest  of  the  most  in- 
teresting and  most  impressive  Servant  passages.  The 
first  is  found  in  Lesson  VII.  In  that  the  Servant  is  Israel, 
and  as  the  passages  advance  the  Servant  represents  an 
ideal  Israel  within  the  real  Israel,  and  wavering  hints  of 
a  person  rather  than  a  people  (49.  1-6;  50.  4-9)  until  at 
last  the  whole  scene  changes  and  the  Servant  is  before  us 
not  only  as  a  person  but  as  a  suffering  person,  whose  pitiable 
plight  moves  whole  nations  to  do  him  homage,  and  kings 
to  be  silent  in  his  presence.  Well  and  truly  have  apostles 
and  teachers  ancient  and  modern  fastened  loving  eyes 
upon  the  passage,  and  seen  in  its  dear  words  an  adumbra- 
tion of  future  words  and  deeds,  even  the  "sufferings  of 
Christ,  and  the  glory  that  should  follow."  No  other  pas- 
sage in  the  Old  Testament  offers  an  anticipation  so  won- 
derful. Who  dares  to  read  this  in  public  without  deep 
emotion? — and  upon  Good  Friday  of  all  days. 

52.  14.  startle.  "Sprinkle"  is  the  ordinary  translation, 
but  it  cannot  be  justified  by  the  Hebrew.  See  the 
commentaries. 

53.  I,  2.  Here  the  nations  begin  to  speak,  and  at  first 
express  surprise  at  the  unbelief  which  has  surrounded 
the  wonderful  news  of  the  Servant.  The  connection 
of  this  with  verse  2  is  not  quite  clear,  but  one  must 
not  expect  of  the  prophet  an  order  of  thought  logical 
in  western  eyes  but  not  so  natural  to  Oriental  think- 
ing. In  verse  2  the  prophet  comes  at  once  to  a 
vivid  description  of  the  Servant  as  one  who  has 
suffered   so  as  to  be  marred  in  form   and  feature. 


GOOD  FRIDAY  87 


In  this  verse  we  see  that  the  people  shrank  from  him 
because  they  thought  that  the  divine  wrath  against 
him  personally  had  produced  this  result.  They 
thought  he  was  a  sinner,  as  Job's  friends  thought 
he  was,  and  therefore  justly  under  the  divine  dis- 
pleasure. 

4-6.  In  these  verses  the  people  see  the  truth.  The 
Servant  has  not  suffered  for  his  sins  but  for  theirs. 
Here  begins  their  own  consciousness  of  sin. 

Chastisement  of  our  peace.  Chastisement  is  pun- 
ishment inflicted  for  moral  ends,  and  here  is  meant 
to  be  suflBcient  to  issue  finally  in  peace. 

8.  by  oppression,  etc.  The  verse  is  extremely  difl5- 
cult  and  obscure.  The  words  have  become  so  familiar 
by  repetition  that  we  do  not  usually  stop  to  ask  what 
they  really  mean.  As  the  meaning  is  so  doubtful 
in  Hebrew,  I  have  not  dared  to  change  the  transla- 
tion. Numerous  suggestions  have  been  made  as  to 
the  meaning,  and  perhaps  the  most  probable,  though 
far  from  certain,  is  that  "From  oppression  and  judg- 
ment he  was  taken  away,"  that  is,  by  death. 

his  life.  This  clause  is  also  both  difficult  and 
doubtful.  It  is  here  set  down  according  to  the  Re- 
vised margin  because  none  of  the  numerous  sugges- 
tions for  either  emendation  or  amendment  seem 
soundly  based. 

9.  With  this  verse  the  speaking  of  the  nations  comes 
to  an  end,  and  verses  10-12  are  the  words  of  the 
prophet  in  part  speaking  for  himself,  in  part  for 
Jehovah.  These  concluding  verses  are  obscure.  The 
texts  of  the  Hebrew  and  of  the  Septuagint  differ 
largely  and  the  difficulty  which  we  experience  is 
therefore  ancient.  It  is  not  likely  that  we  shall 
ever  extract  a  precise  exegesis  of  the  words  as  they 
now    stand.     We    must   content   ourselves    with    an 


88 OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

apprehension  of  the  main  thought,  which  seems  to 
be  that  the  Servant  will  remove  guilt  and  bring  many 
to  righteousness.     As  his  reward  he  shall  live  long, 
and  shall  see  his  seed,  that  is,  his  spiritual  children, 
and  for  his  undeserved  sufferings  and  his  mediatorial 
work  shall  become  a  great  potentate  with  the  powers 
of  a  royal  and  victorious  conqueror.     Then  suddenly 
there  is  a  return,  in  the  very  last  words  to  the  spiritual 
significance  of  the  Servant's  work  as  vicarious  suffering. 
12.  a  portion  with  the  great.    The  Servant  is  to  be 
numbered  with  the  great  of  earth,  and  in  this  it  is  im- 
plied that  political  dominion  is  to  come  to  him. 
divide  the  spoil.     It  is  the  prerogative  of  the  con- 
queror to  do  this,  and  the  Servant  is  therefore  to  be 
a  great  conqueror,   but   the  prophet  takes   care  to 
guard    the    spiritual    character    of    the    Servant    by 
adding  at  once  that  he  is  a  conqueror  by  reason  of 
a  religious  preeminence  obtained  by  the  bearing  of 
the  sins  of  a  whole  people. 
It  were  quite  impossible  to  overstate  the  greatness  or  to 
praise   overmuch   the   beauty   and  the  profound   religious 
significance  of  the  whole  passage.     He  is  indeed  a  poor 
creature  who  can  read  it  in  public  without  deep  emotion, 
restrained  by  public  dignity,  yet  possessing  him  within. 


EASTER  DAY  89 


XXIV 

Casiter  Bap 

Exodus  12.  1-14 

[Alternative  p.  184.] 

The  passage  comes  from  the  hand  of  the  priestly  writer, 
who  composed  it  in  Babylonia  probably  about  B.  C.  500. 
It  gives  the  priestly  regulations  for  the  Passover,  instituted 
in  Egypt  to  protect  the  houses  of  the  Israelites.  It  was 
quite  probably  an  ancient  form  of  sacrifice  among  the 
Semites  and  was  simply  adapted  to  new  conditions  and 
fitted  with  a  new  significance. 

12.  2.  this  month.  It  corresponds  to  March-April  in 
our  calendar  and  in  the  early  records  was  named 
Abib,  and  in  the  later  Nisan.  It  was  the  new  begin- 
ning of  the  new  year,  for  the  old  Hebrew  year  began 
in  the  autumn. 

3.  congregation.  The  priestly  name  for  Israel  organ- 
ized as  a  church. 

tenth  day.  There  is  no  certainly  known  reason 
for  the  choice  of  the  tenth  day  for  the  ceremony, 
but  we  may  remind  ourselves  that  the  Day  of  the 
Atonement  fell  on  the  tenth  day  of  the  seventh 
month,  and  that  the  tenth  day  of  the  twelfth  month 
in  Islam  is  the  day  of  the  great  sacrifice  at  Mecca, 
so  some  sanctity  must  have  belonged  to  the  day 
among  Semites. 

lamb.  The  Hebrew  word  means  either  "lamb"  or 
"kid." 

6.  at  even.  The  Hebrew  means  "between  the  two 
evenings,"  which  meant  the  interval  between  sunset 
and  darkness;  that  is,  the  first  evening  would  be 


90 OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

about  a  half  hour  after  sunset,  at  the  end  of  which, 
under  average  conditions,  the  new  moon  would  ap- 
pear. The  second  evening  would  be  the  hour  between 
that  and  the  coming  of  complete  darkness. 

8.  unleavened  bread,  R.  V.  The  Hebrew  is  plural, 
and  cakes  would  be  a  better  rendering.  The  phrase 
means  a  sort  of  biscuit  which  could  be  baked  quickly 
for  an  unexpected  guest,  which,  if  leavened,  would 
require  much  longer  time  to  wait  for  the  raising  of 
the  dough. 

9.  not  raw,  lest  blood  be  thus  consumed,  which  was 
forbidden  (Lev.  7.  26). 

roast.  We  do  not  certainly  know  why  it  was 
forbidden  to  be  boiled.  There  may  be  a  survival  of 
some  ancient  custom  in  the  prohibition. 

10.  Nothing  must  be  left  over,  lest  the  sacred  flesh 
be  profaned  in  some  way. 

13.  pass  over.  The  Hebrew  word  is  pdsach,  which 
is  cognate  to  pesach  and  Pesach  is  the  word  used 
for  this  sacrifice,  the  Passover.  It  has  come  down 
to  us  in  the  New  Testament  form  Pascha,  from 
which  we  derive  the  adjective  Paschal. 


FIRST  SUNDAY  AFTER  EASTER  91 


XXV 

jfixit  ^unbap  ^fter  taittv 

Isaiah  52.  1-12 

The  lesson  belongs  to  the  Second  Isaiah  and  follows  most 
beautifully  and  fitly  upon  the  story  of  the  Passover  lesson 
of  Easter.  Then  the  people  of  Israel  was  bidden  to  eat 
the  Passover  *'in  haste"  (Exod.  12.  11)  or,  as  the  word  may 
better  be  translated,  in  trepidation  (so  Driver);  but  now 
in  the  exodus  from  Babylon  they  were  not  "to  go  out  in 
haste."  This  is  a  passage  of  rare  beauty  and  much  be- 
loved, for  the  Christian  Church  has  taken  over  its  beautiful 
words  and  wrought  them  into  the  music  of  the  Messianic 
kingdom. 
52.  I.  awake.  Zion  is  to  come  out  of  the  sleepy  lethargy 
of  exile. 

uncircumcised.  This  does  not  mean  that  no 
uncircumcised  shall  enter  the  redeemed  Jerusalem, 
but  only  none  as  a  conqueror. 

3-6  are  in  prose,  and  probably  inserted  to  take  the 
place  of  some  verses  that  had  been  lost. 

sold   for   nought.     Jehovah   sold  his  people  into 
exile  for  their  sins.     He  received  no  money  for  them, 
and  so  may  now  take  them  back  without  payment. 
4.  into   Egypt.    Thither   had   they   gone    as    guests 
(Gen.  45.  9-20). 

without  cause,  that  is,  without  any  just  case 
against  them. 

7.  The  herald  comes  over  the  mountains  with  a 
message  of  victory.  Compare  the  use  which  the 
apostle  makes  of  the  fine  phrase.     Rom.  10.  15. 

Thy  God  reigneth.  Once  again  is  there  a  king  in 
Zion,  and  this  time  it  is  God  himself. 


De OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

8.  the  voice  . . .  watchmen.  Lit.,  "Hark!  Thy  watch- 
men." 

eye  to  eye ;  that  is,  clearly.  It  does  not  mean  that 
God  will  be  visible. 

9.  hath  comforted  . . .  hath  redeemed.  This  has  not 
yet  come,  but  it  is  so  certain  that  the  prophet  uses 
perfect  tenses. 

11.  thence,  that  is,  presumably  from  Babylon, 
vessels,  the  Temple  vessels  carried  off  from  Jeru- 
salem by  Nebuchadrezzar. 

12.  not ...  in  haste.  When  the  people  left  the  bond- 
age in  Egypt  it  was  in  haste  (Exod.  12.  11;  Deut. 
16.  3.),  but  there  is  to  be  now  no  haste,  but  in 
glorious  contrast  the  people  are  to  march  out  in 
triumph  protected  before  and  behind  with  the 
presence  of  their  God. 

rear  guard.  R.  V.  reads  the  old  word  "rearward," 
which  is  perhaps  obsolete  or  obsolescent.  The 
Hebrew  occm-s  again  in  Num.  10. 25  and  Josh.  6.  9, 13. 


SECOND  SUNDAY  AFTER  EASTER  93 


XXVI 

^econb  ^unbap  ^Cter  Casiter 

Exodus  16.  2-15 

The  lesson  is  taken  from  a  passage  written  in  its  present 
form  for  the  greater  part  by  a  priestly  writer  (P)  during  the 
Exile  in  Babylonia,  with  which  there  have  been  incorporated 
a  few  verses  from  the  Judaistic  writer  (J)  about  B.  C.  850. 
The  whole  has  been  welded  into  one  by  the  compilers  of 
the  Pentateuch.  The  passage  is  interesting  in  itself  and  not 
without  a  lesson  as  to  the  Divine  Providence  in  giving  food 
to  men  in  his  own  way. 

1 6.  3.  by  the  flesh  pots.  Though  they  had  suffered 
much  at  the  hands  of  their  taskmasters,  the  bounty 
of  Egypt  remains  in  remembrance.  Compare  Num- 
bers 11.  5:  "We  remember  the  fish  which  we  did 
eat  in  Egypt  for  nought;  the  cucumbers,  and  the 
melons,  and  the  leeks,  and  the  onions  and  the  garlic." 
5.  prepare.  Compare  Numbers  11.  7,  8:  "And  the 
manna  was  like  coriander  seed,  and  the  appearance 
thereof  as  the  appearance  of  bdellium.  The  people 
went  about,  and  gathered  it,  and  ground  it  in  mills, 
or  beat  it  in  mortars,  and  seethed  it  in  pots,  and 
made  cakes  of  it:  and  the  taste  of  it  was  as  the  taste 
of  fresh  oil." 

9-12.  These  verses  have  been  at  some  time  acci- 
dentally displaced.  They  belong  after  verse  5,  and 
I  have  there  placed  them.  The  command  given  to 
the  people  in  verse  6-8  should  follow  the  command 
from  God  to  deliver  it. 

10.  the  glory  of  Jehovah.  Probably  a  great  glow  of 
fire  above  the  Tent  of  Meeting  and  though  brilliant 
in  itself  yet  intended  to  shield  from  human  eyes  the 


94 OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

greater  glory  of  the  Lord  which  no  human  eyes  could 
behold. 

12.  at  even;  lit.,  "between  the  two  evenings";  that 
is,  the  interval  between  sunset  and  darkness.  See 
the  note  on  Exodus  12.  6,  Lesson  XXIV,  p.  89. 

13.  the  quails.  A  migratory  bird  which  comes  out 
of  Arabia  in  March  and  April  and  often  in  immense 
numbers.  They  fly  with  the  wind,  and  being  weak 
of  wing  alight  at  night;  sometimes  they  even  cover 
the  ground,  and  are  easily  captured  by  hand. 

14.  a  thin  flake.  R.  V.,  "small  round  thing,"  which 
is  without  sound  philological  basis.  See  for  another 
description  of  manna  the  note  on  verse  5  above. 

15.  What  is  it?  Hebrew  mdn-huy  intended  as  a 
popular  etymology  for  "manna,"  the  real  origin  of 
the  word  being  still  unknown. 


THIRD  SUNDAY  AFTER  EASTER  95 


XXVII 

Deuteronomy  4.  1-20 
[Alternative  p.  186.] 

The  book  of  Deuteronomy  was  discovered  in  the  reign 
of  Josiah  king  of  Judah,  during  some  Temple  restorations 
in  the  year  B.  C.  621.  In  its  present  form  additions  have 
been  made  at  the  beginning  and  the  end,  and  as  Josiah 
first  saw  it,  and  put  its  enactments  into  force,  it  probably 
consisted  of  chapters  12-26.  The  influence  of  the  book 
was  incalculable,  for  it  not  only  transformed  the  kingdom 
under  Josiah  but  its  spirit,  and  often  its  very  ideas,  are 
traceable  in  several  other  books  of  Holy  Scripture.  The 
period  of  its  writing  is  uncertain  and  the  hand  that  wrote 
it  is  quite  unknown,  but  its  interpretation  of  God's  will 
as  set  down  in  the  form  of  a  rereading  and  rewriting  of  the 
work  of  Moses  lives  forever.  This  lesson  belongs  to  the 
second  part  of  the  first  discourse  of  Moses,  and  is  an  ex- 
hortation to  Israel  to  cherish  her  glorious  advantages  and 
privileges  in  the  possession  of  a  God  so  glorious,  and  a  law 
so  excellent,  and  not  to  run  any  risk  of  losing  a  spiritual 
apprehension  of  God  by  drifting  back  into  idolatries  like 
her  neighbors. 
4.  2.  Ye  shall  not  add.    It  is  important  that  the  law 

be  not  weakened  by  superfluous  expansions,  or  by 

accommodations  to  the  whims  of  the  moment. 

3.  Baal-peor.    The  historic  episode  is  recoimted   in 

Num.  25.  1-5. 

6.  Israel's   observance   of   God's   law   will   bring   her 

honorable  repute  among  the  people  with  whom  she  is 

to  live  in  Canaan. 


96 OT.D  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

7.  gods.  The  Hebrew  may  mean  either  god  or  gods, 
but  the  latter  seems  preferable  here.  R.  V.  has  ''a 
god." 

8.  so  righteous.  Israel's  laws  are  righteous,  that  is, 
they  conform  to  all  the  requirements  of  ideal  right 
and  justice. 

9.  thy  heart.  In  Hebrew  psychology  the  "heart"  is 
the  seat  of  intellect,  not  of  emotion,  as  with  us.  Here, 
then,  memory  is  implied;  the  law  must  be  kept  in 
mind. 

12.  ye  saw  no  fonn.  There  was  no  material  shape 
or  substance  before  them,  and  therefore  there  should 
be  no  temptation  to  them  to  make  any  material  repre- 
sentation of  Deity  (see  verses  15-18). 

13.  ten  commandments.  Lit.,  **ten  words,"  that  is, 
the  Decalogue. 

15-19.  Israel  is  warned  not  to  make  any  image  to 
revcn^ncc  or  worship  it  as  divine.  The  prohibition  is 
sweeping,  and  no  exception  is  made. 

18.  water  under  the  earth.  This  means  the  subter- 
ranean dc(^])  of  wjitcrs  which  was  believed  to  be  the 
source  of  all  springs,  and  hence  of  all  streams. 

19.  The  worship  of  the  heavenly  bodies  might  pre- 
sumably tempt  an  Israelite,  especially  as  neighboring 
peoples  did  practice  it  extensively.  In  their  case 
it  was  by  a  Divine  Providence,  for  God  had  "dividedy*^ 
or,  rather,  allotted  it  to  them.  But  this  worship  is 
not  permitted  to  Israel,  for  God  has  specially  chosen 
her  for  his  own  inheritance  (verse  20). 


FOURTH  SUNDAY  AFTER  EASTER  07 


XXVIII 
Jf ourtd  g)unbap  i^iftcr  Carter 

Deuteronomy  6.  4-25 

A  SIMPLE  general  statement  about  the  book  of  Deu- 
teronomy as  a  whole  may  be  read  at  the  beginning  of  the 
notes  on  Lesson  XXVII.  This  lesson  belongs  to  the  Second 
Discourse,  which  fills  chapters  5  to  11. 

6.  4-9.  This  section,  beginning  with  the  word  "hear"  in 
the  English  Version,  is  the  Creed  of  Judaism,  filling  a  place 
in  that  great  modern  faith  similar  to  the  position  of  the 
Apostles'  Creed  among  many  Christian  churches.  Its 
initial  word  in  Hebrew  is  Shema*  (that  is,  "hear")  and  is 
the  first  bit  of  Scripture  taught  to  Jewish  children  along 
with  Deut.  11.  13-21  and  Num.  15.  37-41.  The  latter  two 
are  great  and  beautiful  indeed,  but  the  Shema''  is  far  above 
them,  for  it  declares  the  Divine  Unity  in  fullness,  and  the 
old  Zohar  says,  "When  men  in  prayer  declare  the  Unity 
of  the  Holy  Name  in  love  and  reverence,  the  walls  of  earth's 
darkness  are  cleft  in  twain,  and  the  Face  of  the  Heavenly 
King  is  revealed,  lighting  up  the  universe." 

6.  4.  one  Lord.  This  denotes  both  the  unity  and  the 
uniqueness  of  Jehovah.  He  is  the  only  God,  and  he 
is  also  one  Lord. 

5.  love  the  Lord.  Enjoined  only  in  Deuteronomy  and 
in  the  books  influenced  by  it,  and  in  our  Lord's  words 
the  first  of  all  the  commandments  (Mark  12.  29f.). 

6.  upon  thine  heart,  that  is,  commit  them  to  memory. 

7.  teach  them  diligently.  Lit.,  "prick  in,"  "whet," 
"sharpen,"  that  is,  make  incisive. 

8.  bind  them.  Interpreted  literally  by  the  Jews,  who 
wrote  the  passage   (4-9)   upon  tiny  parchment  rolls, 


98 OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

which  were  then  inclosed  in  metal  cases,  and  worn  by 
them  on  brow  and  arm  at  morning  prayer. 
9.  door  posts.  The  Jews  wrote  the  Shema  also  on 
parchment  and  inclosed  it  in  a  tiny  wooden  or  metal 
box  called  Mezuzah,  and  affixed  it  to  the  right  hand 
door  post,  and  every  pious  Jew  touches  it  or  salutes 
it  on  entering,  reciting  at  the  same  time  the  words, 
*'The  Lord  shall  keep  thy  going  out  and  thy  coming  in, 
from  this  time  forth  and  forever  more"  (Psa.  121.  8). 
There  is  no  real  reason  for  supposing  that  the  book  of 
Deuteronomy  intended  this  other  than  metaphorically, 
as  also  verse  8. 

10-15.  When  Israel  enjoys  material  blessings  in  her 
land  she  must  not  forget  Jehovah  and  worship  other 
gods. 

13.  swear  by  his  name.  A  man  swears,  in  substan- 
tiation of  his  word,  by  that  in  which  he  believes.  It 
was,  therefore,  important  that  Jews  should  make 
oath  only  by  Jehovah. 

16.  Massah,  that  is,  proving.  See  Exod.  17.  2,  7. 
20-25.  The  children  of  every  generation  are  to  be 
taught  the  Law,  and  its  meaning  and  its  historical 
background.  The  law  of  God  was  given  in  human 
history  and  is  not  understandable  save  in  that  his- 
torical environment. 


FIFTH  SUNDAY  AFTER  EASTER  99 


XXIX 

if tftf)  ^vrnha^  ^ittt  €asittt 

Deuteronomy  8.  2-20 

For  observations  upon  the  book  of  Deuteronomy  as  a 
whole  see  Lesson  XXVII,  p.  95.  This  present  lesson  be- 
longs to  the  central  portion  of  the  book,  which  contains 
the  exposition  of  the  Mosaic  Law.  In  it  Israel  is  bidden  to 
remember  God*s  providential  guidance  in  the  wilderness, 
and  knowing  from  this  how  dependent  she  has  been  upon 
God's  bounty  be  ever  mindful  to  keep  his  commandments 
in  gratitude. 

8.  2.  forty  years,  that  is,  the  period  of  a  generation  ac- 
cording to  Hebrew  reckoning. 

3.  manna.  Lit.,  "What  is  it?"  according  to  a  popular 
etymology.  It  was  probably  the  exudation  from  the 
trimk  and  branches  of  the  tarfa,  a  species  of  the 
tamarisk.  The  lesson  which  they  were  intended  to 
learn  was  that  they  were  entirely  dependent  upon  God 
who  could  satisfy  the  needs  of  their  bodies  by  other 
than  the  normal  means.  Our  Lord  makes  a  spiritual 
application  and  contrast  in  Matt.  4.  4. 

4.  bUster.    R.  V.,  "swell." 

5.  disciplineth.    R.  V.,  "chasteneth." 

7.  The  description  of  the  Palestinian  landscape  is  very 
attractive.  It  is  really  contrasted  with  Egypt,  where 
there  are  no  brooks  or  wells  like  Palestine  but  only 
the  great  Nile  as  a  soiu'ce  of  irrigation. 

depths.  The  great  deep  which  was  supposed  to 
exist  imder  the  earth,  and  to  supply  water  to  the  springs 
and  streams. 

8.  The  products  of  the  land  are  enumerated  with 
wheat  and  barley  first  as  the  staple  food  of  man.     oil 


100 OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

olives  are  the   olive   trees  which   have   been   grafted 
and  produce  oil  as  distinct  from  the  wild  olive  trees. 
9.  iron.     Brought  from  the  north,  where  the  Assyrians 
worked  it  in  the  Lebanon  region. 

brass  here  means  copper,  or  bronze,  its  alloy  with 
tin,  and  not  what  we  mean  by  brass,  which  is  an 
alloy  with  zinc. 

14.  out  of  the  land  of  Egypt.  Always  do  the  biblical 
writers  keep  in  mind  the  providential  beginning  of 
their  people's  history. 

16.  thy  latter  end,  rather,  "thy  later  years"  is  the 
meaning. 

18.  Prosperity  comes  only  from  Jehovah.  Man  may 
work,  must  work,  indeed — but  it  is  God  that  gives 
the  increase,  and  Israel  must  keep  this  fundamental 
fact  in  mind.     Compare  Psa.  127. 

19,  20.  The  Lord  is  expelling  peoples  before  Israel, 
because  they  had  failed  to  meet  the  conditions  of  a 
continued  existence.  If  Israel  fails  also  by  yielding 
to  the  temptations  of  Canaanite  worship,  with  all  its 
incitements  to  deeds  of  lust,  then  Israel  also  shall  go  to 
a  sure  doom.  (Compare  Deut.  4.  25f.  and  6.  14f.) 


SUNDAY  AFTER  ASCENSION  DAY  101 


XXX 

^unbap  ^fter  ^sittmion  Bap 

Deuteronomy  30 

For  observations  upon  the  book  of  Deuteronomy  as  a 
whole,  see  Lesson  XXVII,  p.  95.  The  present  lesson  be- 
longs to  Moses's  third  discourse,  which  fills  29.  1 — 30.  20. 
In  chapter  28  God  threatens  to  abandon  his  people,  if  his 
law  be  not  kept,  "And  the  Lord  shall  scatter  thee  among 
all  peoples,  from  one  end  of  the  earth  even  unto  the  other 
end  of  the  earth"  (verse  64)  and  the  threat  is  continued 
in  verses  65-68  in  a  rising  tide  of  threatening  invective. 
From  this  threatened  exile  the  beautiful  chapter  now  be- 
fore us  gives  the  conditions  of  return. 

30.  I.  which  I  have  set  before  thee,  that  is,  offered  as 
a  choice. 

3.  change  thy  fortune.  R.  V.,  "turn  thy  captivity," 
compare,  however,  Amos  9.  14,  Hos.  6.  11,  etc.  (so 
Driver  and  G.  A.  Smith,  who  translate  "turn  thy 
fortune,"  both  following  Ewald). 

4.  uttermost  parts  of  heaven;  that  is,  the  remote 
ends  of  earth  on  which  the  vault  of  heaven  was 
supposed  to  rest. 

6.  circumcise  thy  heart;  that  is,  sharpen  the  spiritual 

perceptions.     The   thought   is   a  Messianic  one    (so 

Dillmann);  compare  Jer.  31.  33,  32.  39f.,  Ezek.  11.  19 

(Driver). 

11-20.  The  commandments  thus  to  be  followed  are 

not   too   hard.     The   verses    11-14,  however,  do  not 

naturally  follow  upon  verse  10,  and  are  but  loosely 

connected  at  the  best. 

12,   13.    These    verses  were    sometimes    quoted  by 

ancient  Rabbis  to  prove  the  finality  of  the  law.     No 


102 OLD  TESTAIVIENT  LESSONS 

second  Moses  was  needed  to  bring  new  laws  out  of 
Heaven,  for  there  were  no  more  laws  there.  This  was 
the  type  of  reasoning  which  caused  the  rejection  of 
our  Lord  as  a  Messiah  when  he  appeared  among 
men.  No  room  could  be  made  for  his  teaching. 
14.  very  nigh.  Prophets  and  teachers  and  the  dis- 
courses of  Deuteronomy  have  brought  it  very  near. 
There  can  be  no  excuse  of  ignorance  concerning  it. 
16.  The  ordinary  text,  which  is  translated  in  R.  V., 
makes  no  satisfactory  sense.  I  have,  therefore,  re- 
stored clauses  which  the  Septuagint  has  preserved. 
The  imperfection  of  the  Hebrew  text  is  concealed 
from  the  reader  by  a  mistranslation  of  one  word. 
The  restoration  of  the  Septuagint  text  is  supported 
by  Dillmann,  Oettli,  Marti,  Driver,  and  G.  A.  Smith. 
The  whole  then  reads,  ["If  thou  shalt  hearken  to  the 
commandment  of  Jehovah  thy  God]  which  I  com- 
mand thee  this  day,  to  love  Jehovah  thy  God,  to 
walk  in  his  ways,  and  to  keep  his  commandments 
and  his  judgments,  then  thou  shalt  live  and  multiply, 
and  Jehovah  thy  God  shall  bless  thee."  The  part 
inserted  is  here  placed  in  brackets. 
19,  20.  Heaven  and  earth  are  called  as  witnesses 
that  Israel  has  been  fully  informed  of  the  choice. 
So  also  in  4.  26. 


WHITSUNDAY  103 


XXXI 

1^i)tt£(unbap 

Joel  2.  21-32 
[Alternative  p.  188.] 

Nothing  is  known  of  the  prophet  Joel  beyond  what  may 
be  gathered  from  the  contents  of  his  little  book.  His 
father's  name  is  given  as  Pethuel,  but  the  time  when  the 
prophet  lived  was  evidently  not  known  when  the  brief  su- 
perscription to  the  book  was  written.  He  quite  possibly 
lived  and  worked  about  B.  C.  500,  which  would  make  him  a 
later  contemporary  of  Haggai  and  of  Zechariah,  but  he  may 
well  belong  to  a  century  later.  The  matter  is  interesting, 
but  quite  unimportant  so  far  as  an  intelligent  use  of  his 
little  book  is  concerned.  The  occasion  of  his  book  is  per- 
fectly clear.  There  had  been  a  frightful  and  destructive 
visit  of  locusts,  accompanied  probably  by  a  drought,  which 
had  desolated  the  land  and  almost  extinguished  hope. 
Joel  takes  the  occasion  as  a  call  to  repentance  and  a  new 
life,  and  having  enforced  this  with  every  insistence  turns 
then,  after  receiving  assurance  of  a  compliance  with  his 
admonitions,  to  declare  God  reconciled  with  his  erring  but 
repentant  people  and  promises  to  them  material  succor 
and  a  glorious  spiritual  uplift. 

2.  21.  land.     Lit.,    "ground,"    which    had    suffered    so 
severely  from  locusts  and  drought. 

hath  done.    The  prophetic  past.     It  describes  what 
Jehovah  will  do. 

22.  The  animals  that  have  suffered  for  food  need 
fear  no  more,  for  pasture  and  fruit  trees  shall  spring 
forth  again. 

23.  former  rain,  that  is,  the  rain  of  October  and  No- 


104 OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

vember,    the    latter   rain,    the    rain   of   March-April, 
the  rain,  that  is,  the  winter  rain. 

25.  The  verse  contains  a  series  of  words  for  the  locust. 
We  have  no  such  set  of  synonyms,  though  we  do  know 
the  literal  meanings  of  the  different  words.  Driver 
thus  translates  them:  locust-swarmer,  cankerworm- 
lapper,  caterpillar-finisher,  and  palmerworm-shearer. 
28-32.  After  these  material  blessings  Jehovah  will 
give  as  great  a  measure  of  spiritual  gifts. 
28.  my  spirit.  As  the  spirit  in  man  gives  him  life, 
and  imparts  power  and  activity  to  the  "flesh,"  so  the 
Spirit  of  God  is  his  "conscious  vital  force,"  which, 
proceeding  from  him,  gives  life  to  all  beings,  man 
and  animal  also.  From  this  gift  proceed  in  man 
quickened  intellectual  faculties,  extraordinary  gifts  of 
mind  and  thought,  and  above  these  every  spiritual 
faculty. 

shall  prophesy.       The  prophetic  gift  comes  from 
the  bestowal  of  God*s  gift.  Joel  foresees  in  its  abundant 
outpouring  the  coming  of  the  day  when  the  hope  of 
Moses  (Numbers  11.  29)  shall  be  fulfilled.     To  prophesy 
does  not  mean  merely  to  predict  future  events,  but 
far  more  to  instruct  in  religious  and  moral  truth. 
The  words   from  verse  28  to  verse  32   (delivered)   are 
quoted  by  Peter  (Acts  2.  17-21)  as  applied  to  the  outpour- 
ing of  the  Spirit  on  the  day  of  Pentecost,  but  they  are 
further  a  prophecy  of  an  entire  dispensation  of  the  gift  of 
the  Spirit  and  their  meaning  is  not  exhausted  by  the  Pente- 
cost of  the  early  days  of  the  apostles. 


TRINITY  SUNDAY  105 


XXXII 

^xinitp  ^unbap 

Isaiah  6.  1-13 

Isaiah  was  called  to  be  a  prophet  in  the  year  that  Uzziah, 
king  of  Judah,  died,  which  was  probably  the  year  B.  C.  740. 
This  lesson  describes  the  spiritual  experience  by  which  he 
was  inducted  into  his  office.  The  manner  in  which  he  has 
dated  it  intimates  that  the  writing  took  place  at  least  some 
time  after  the  call,  though  there  is  not  the  slightest  reason 
for  any  presumption  that  he  may  have  made  any  addition 
to  the  content  of  this  great  event  when  he  wrote  it  down. 
The  call  came  to  him  amid  throngs  of  worshipers  in  the 
Temple.  There  he  passed  into  a  sort  of  trance  and  in  a 
vision  saw  sights  of  grandeur,  splendor,  and  awful  sim- 
plicity, while  the  eyes  of  those  about  him  saw  only  the 
physical  objects  to  which  earthly  eyes  were  accustomed. 
Though  necessarily  described  in  terms  of  seeing  and  of 
hearing,  it  was  only  to  the  inner  eye  and  the  inner  ear 
that  these  sights  and  sounds  were  manifest.  Yet  it  is  an 
actual  experience  that  is  here  recorded.  It  made  Isaiah 
a  new  man,  reconciled  to  God  and  commissioned  to  his 
service,  and  in  his  whole  career  he  never  doubted  it.  Hence- 
forth he  spoke  with  authority,  and  men  recognized  it. 
6.  I.  I  saw  the  Lord;  not,  indeed,  his  face,  but  only  the 
great  presence,  upon  a  throne  which  was  high  and 
lifted  up,  and  upon  the  skirts  of  his  great  train  the 
eyes  of  the  prophet  rested. 

2.  seraphim.  Beings  mentioned  nowhere  else  in  Scrip- 
ture, and  to  be  conceived  probably  as  of  human  form. 

3.  Holy.  The  word  thrice  repeated  represents  an 
emphasis  upon  the  supreme  attribute  of  God.  The 
word  "holy"  in  the  Old  Testament  has  the  root  idea 


106 OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

of  separateness,  set-apartness,  and  as  here  applied 
to  God  indicates  his  complete  separation  from  all  the 
influences  which  tend  to  defile  man.  From  what 
follows  we  see  that  Isaiah  thought  ethical  righteous- 
ness to  be  a  great  part  of  this  separateness,  and  in 
his  contemplation  of  the  Divine  Presence  was  led  at 
once  to  think  of  himself  as  a  sinful  man. 

4.  smoke.     A  symbol  of  the  divine  anger  against  sin. 

5.  a  man  of  unclean  lips.  Neither  is  the  prophet  fit 
to  speak  for  God,  nor  are  the  people  fit  to  pronounce 
the  divine  name  in  praise.  In  the  prophet's  case  his 
whole  sinful  nature  seems  expressed  in  these  sinful 
lips,  and  the  hot  coal  from  the  altar  is  needed  to  purify. 
As  soon  as  he  is  purged,  there  comes  at  once  the  call 
to  service. 

9-12.  Now  comes  the  saddening  word  that  though  the 
prophet  is  fitted  for  his  declaring  of  the  divine  mes- 
sage, the  people  are  not  fitted  to  hear  it  and  under- 
stand it,  and  accept  it  and  be  healed.  The  prophet 
is  sent  to  a  task  in  which  the  outlook  is  not  for  success 
but  for  failure. 

13.  A  most  diflScult  verse.  The  last  clause — "the  holy 
seed  is  the  stock  thereof"  is  not  in  the  Septuagint  and 
is  probably  not  genuine.  If  we  leave  that  out,  what 
remains  is  no  less  diflScult,  but  rather  more  so.  The 
meaning  would  then  be  the  utter  destruction  of  the 
people.  But  this  is  certainly  not  Isaiah's  doctrine. 
He  believed,  rather,  in  the  saving  and  saved  remnant, 
as  his  son's  name  indicates,  Shear-jashub  (7.  3),  which 
means,  "a  remnant  shall  turn";  that  is,  turn  from  sin 
to  God,  and  hence  be  saved  as  a  God-fearing  people. 
This  seems  to  compel  us  so  to  interpret  what  remains 
as  implying  that  though  the  trees  be  felled,  the  stock 
remains,  and  from  it  one  should  hope  that  the  life 
of  the  nation  would  spring  again. 


FIRST  SUNDAY  AFTER  TRINITY  107 


XXXIII 

jFivsit  ^unbap  ^fter  Zxinitp 

Joshua  1.  1-17 

The  book  of  Deuteronomy  is  a  sermon,  most  beautiful, 
most  moving,  and  still  most  instructive.  The  book  of 
Joshua  is  a  little  volume  of  illustrations  of  the  principles 
of  Deuteronomy  worked  out  in  the  life  of  the  nation.  Its 
chief  hero  is  Joshua,  first  the  servant  or  minister  of  Moses 
and  then  his  successor  as  the  people's  leader,  but  the  chief 
historical  interest  is  in  Judah,  and  there  the  book  must 
have  been  written.  The  book  was  not  written  by  one  hand, 
but  grew  as  time  demanded  and  opportunity  offered.  The 
men  who  put  it  together  had  earlier  writings  before  them, 
and  we  can  see  that  they  utilized  narratives  of  Judaistic 
and  Ephraimistic  writers  whose  work  is  found  in  the  Penta- 
teuch to  form  an  instructive  book  for  religious  teaching, 
and  in  the  spirit  of  Deuteronomy.  With  this  were  later 
combined  the  records  which  Priestly  writers  had  preserved 
and  written  down  during  the  Exile.  The  fine  passage 
here  used  as  a  lesson  contains  no  priestly  material,  but 
only  Judaistic  and  Ephraimistic  material  with  phrases 
which  show  the  hand  of  a  writer  who  lived  in  the  spirit 
of  Deuteronomy  and  loved  it. 

I.  4.  With  this  verse  compare  Deut.  11.  24  which  is 
there  the  word  of  Moses,  and  here  the  word  of  Jehovah, 
the  land  of  the  Hittites,  a  phrase  often  used  by  the 
Assyrian  kings  as  more  or  less  synonymous  with  the 
land  of  the  Amorites  for  Syria  and  Palestine.  Among 
Hebrew  writers  the  land  of  the  Amorites,  or  the  land 
of  the  Canaanites,  is  the  phrase  for  the  Promised 
Land.  Here  the  land  of  the  Hittites  is  practically 
synonymous  with  these. 


108 OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

Sea  of  the  going  down  of  the  siin.  That  is,  the  Mediter- 
ranean Sea. 

10.  officers.  The  Hebrew  word  shoterim  is  used  in 
various  senses,  but  in  this  passage  would  appear  to 
signify  the  army  officers  who  pass  down  orders  through 
the  ranks. 

12.  Reubenites  . . .  Gadites  . . .  Manasseh.    These  were 
already  settled  east  of  Jordan,  and  Joshua  is  remind- 
ing them  that  it  is  their  duty  to  help  their  brethren 
in  conquering  the  territory  west  of  the  river,  which 
proved  to  be  a  far  harder  task  in  the  issue.     In  verse 
16  we  have  recorded  their  promise  to  give  aid. 
The   great  and   echoing  words   of    this  chapter   are   Be 
strong  and  of  good  courage.     There  are   no  promises  made 
to  cowards,  cravens,  or  shirkers,  nor  was  the  future  to  be 
safe  in  their  hands. 


SECOND  SUNDAY  AFTER  TRINITY         109 


XXXIV 

Judges  4.  1-16,  23 

The  book  of  Judges,  like  Joshua,  is  a  compilation  of 
historical  materials  derived  from  the  ancient  writers,  Juda- 
istic  and  Ephraimistic,  whose  work  is  so  extensively  recog- 
nized in  the  Pentateuch.  This  was  utilized  for  pragmatic 
or  didactic  purposes  by  an  editor  or  editors  who  seem  to 
have  been  influenced  not  so  much  by  Deuteronomy  as 
scholars  generally  have  supposed,  but,  as  Burney  has  argued, 
by  an  earlier  disciple  of  E,  who  laid  the  structure  of  the 
book  as  early  as  B.  C.  650.  To  this  were  later  affixed  the 
brief  introduction  (1.  1 — %.  5),  the  appendices  18-21,  the 
stories  of  the  minor  Judges,  and  a  few  other  pieces.  For 
the  present  purpose  the  main  consideration  should  be  not 
the  origin  but  the  present  character  and  value  of  the  book. 
It  is  passing  strange  to  see  how  little  popularity  the  book 
enjoys  among  ordinary  Christian  readers.  It  is  most 
highly  valued  by  scholars  who  appreciate  its  enormous 
historical  value.  It  is  crowded  with  romantic  incidents, 
it  has  in  rich  measure  the  quality  of  reality,  and  one  reads 
its  glowing  pages  with  a  feeling  of  the  presence  of  its  actors, 
living  and  moving  before  the  eye  of  imagination.  The 
lesson  here  given  should  be  read  in  public  after  the  reader 
has  himself  read  repeatedly  the  splendid  contemporary 
poem  in  Judges  5.  That  will  fire  the  blood  and  quicken 
the  pulses  and  then  one  might  read  this  far  tamer  prose 
passage  as  it  should  be  read. 

4.  2.  Jabin  king  of  Canaan.  There  were  many  kings  in 
Canaan,  but  to  this  passage  Jabin  appears  as  king 
par  excellence y  as  a  sort  of  overlord. 

Hazor    (Josh.  19.    36).     Probably  the   modern  El- 


no OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

Hadireh,  south-southwest  of  Kadesh  and  on  the  north- 
ern side  of  the  wady  which  runs  into  the  lake  of 
Huleh  (so  Burney). 

Sisera,  quite  probably  a  Hittite  name. 

Harosheth,  probably  now  represented  by  el-Hari- 
tiyeh  on  the  northern  bank  of  the  Kishon. 

3.  twenty  years,  a  general  number  signifying  half  a 
generation. 

4.  Deborah.    The  name  means  "bee." 
Lappidoth.     The  name  means  "torches." 

was  judging,  that  is,  deciding  cases  between  man  and 
man.     But  the  time  had  now  come  for  rousing  men  to 
give  up  disputing  about  small  matters  and  to  fight 
for  liberation  from  the  oppressor. 
6.  Barak.    The  name  means  "lightning." 

deploy.  R.  V.  reads  "draw  unto,"  but  it  is  a 
military  term  and  means  to  extend  a  marching  column 
into  a  loose  fighting  line,  to  face  an  enemy. 

Tabor.  The  fine  mountain  which  rises  conspicu- 
ously to  a  height  of  thirteen  hundred  and  twelve  feet 
above  the  plain.  The  line  would  be  at  the  base  with 
the  mountain  glens  to  fall  back  on  for  guerrilla  fight- 
ing should  defeat  come  on  the  plain. 

Kishon.  At  Sisera's  back  would  be  the  sluggish 
waters  of  this  little  river,  with  some  ugly  quicksands 
into  which  Barak  might  drive  him.  The  Hebrew 
position  was  admirably  chosen. 

8.  K  thou  wilt  go.  As  prophetess  she  would  bring 
not  only  her  own  courage  and  native  wisdom  but 
also  the  sense  of  divine  companionship  and  help. 

9.  Deborah  warns  Barak  that  he  need  not  expect 
glory;  that  is  fated  to  fall  not  to  Deborah  indeed,  but 
to  another  woman,  Jael. 

II.  father-in-law.  R.  V.  translates  "brother-in-law," 
but  without  warrant. 


SECOND  SUNDAY  AFTER  TRINITY         111 


15.  Sisera  fled  to  meet  his  death  by  assassination  at 
the  hands  of  Jael.  Israel's  writer  thinks  not,  as  we 
do,  of  the  work  of  an  assassin.  The  world  has  traveled 
far  since  that  day,  and  we  have  no  need  to  judge 
Israel  save  by  the  standards  of  her  own  time.  Even 
without  JaeFs  share,  it  was  a  glorious  victory  and 
gave  Israel  a  breathing  space  in  which  to  carry  on  the 
work  of  civilization,  and  the  writer  had  good  cause 
to  ascribe  this  good  result  to  God  (verse  23). 

16.  The  rout  of  Sisera's  army  was  accompUshed 
through  a  combination  of  circumstances,  each  natural 
in  itself,  and  all  providentially  working  toward  this  one 
end.  It  was  natural  that  the  army  should  endeavor 
to  reach  the  stronghold  of  Harosheth,  and  the  storm  had 
so  swelled  the  current  of  Kishon  as  to  fill  the  narrow 
pass  which  led  to  their  objective.  The  hills  of  Samaria 
were  on  their  left,  and  on  their  right  a  stream  now 
become  a  torrent,  and  behind  them  Barak's  victorious 
men.  See  the  descriptions  in  Thomson's  Land  and 
Book,  p.  436,  and  compare  Ewing  in  Hastings'  Bible 
Dictionary,  vol.  iii,  p.  5. 


112  OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 


XXXV 

1  Samuel  1.  1-5,  9-28 

Here  begins  the  story  of  Samuel's  life,  and  the  portion 
here  chosen  belonged  originally  to  a  separate  book  to  what 
we  should  call  a  biography  of  him.  It  is  a  continuation  of 
the  work  of  the  Ephraimistic  writer  (E)  about  B.  C.  800, 
to  whom  we  owe  so  much  in  the  Pentateuch.  There  need 
be  no  doubt  of  the  greatness  of  Samuel  or  any  question 
of  the  importance  of  his  contribution  to  the  life  and  history 
of  his  people.  We  may  well  be  glad  that  the  compilers  of 
the  books  of  Samuel  preserved  this  narrative  of  his  birth 
and  youthful  days. 

I.  2.  two  wives.     A  well-to-do  citizen  with  two  wives 
was  not  uncommon  in  the  early  days. 

Hannah    means    "grace,"    and    Peninnah    perhaps 
"coral." 

3.  Lord  of  hosts.  This  title  occurs  eleven  times  in 
Samuel,  and  is  frequent  in  the  prophets.  Its  original 
meaning  was  Lord  of  the  armies  of  Israel,  but  in  times 
more  peaceful  came  to  signify  Lord  of  the  hosts  of 
heaven;  that  is,  "of  the  stars,"  and  still  later  "of  the 
angels." 

Shiloh.     The    modern    Seilun,    almost    ten    miles 
northeast  of  Beitin  (Bethel). 

5.  one  portion.  R.  V.  translates  "a  double  portion," 
but  the  present  Hebrew  text  scarcely  allows  it,  and 
a  dispute  as  to  the  meaning  of  the  Hebrew  word  thus 
translated  has  long  continued.  The  Septuagint  has 
another  word,  and  I  have  used  it  and  changed  the 
translation   to  accord.     The  general  meaning  would 


THIRD  SUNDAY  AFTER  TRINITY  113 

then  be  that  he  gave  several  portions  to  Peninnah 
because  she  had  children.  On  the  other  hand  Hannah 
received  only  one  portion,  but  the  writer  in  order  to 
guard  against  the  possible  thought  that  one  por- 
tion only  might  make  her  seem  to  be  less  highly  es- 
teemed adds,  "though  he  loved  Hannah." 
9.  and  stood  before  Jehovah.  So  the  Septuagint — 
which  gives  a  far  better  sense.  To  stand  before 
Jehovah  is  to  pray. 
16.  a  wicked  woman.    Lit.,  a  daughter  of  Belial. 

20.  Samuel.  The  name  probably  is  etymologically 
"Name  of  God";  in  this  passage  there  is  a  connection 
suggested  with  the  Hebrew  "word  shaal,  "to  ask." 
This  is  an  assonance,  and  not  an  etymology.  Similar 
instances  are  frequent  in  the  Old  Testament. 

21.  A  full  year  has  now  elapsed. 

23.  until  she  had  weaned  him.  Oriental  mothers 
nurse  a  child  for  fuU  two  years,  and  even  a  term  of 
five  or  six  years  is  not  unknown. 

24.  ephah,  a  full  bushel. 


114  OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 


XXXVI 

Jf ourtl)  ^unbap  ^fter  tKrinitp 

1  Samuel  3.  1—4.  1 

This  story  of  the  call  of  Samuel  belongs  to  the  same 

historical   document   as   the   preceding   (E).     It   needs   no 

praise,  as  one  of  the  richest  and  most  beautiful  of  the  early 

representations  of  an  immediate  communion  with  God. 

3.  I.  the    child.    The    Hebrew   gives    no    indication   of 

Samuel's  age  at  this  time,  for  the  word  used  is  applied 

to  any  age  from  that  of  a  baby  to  a  man  of  forty 

years  of  age. 

2.  Eli  was  laid  down.  He  slept  in  one  of  the  chambers, 
while  Samuel  apparently  was  in  the  room  with  the 
ark  itself.  The  whole  arrangement  is  quite  simple 
and  very  different  from  the  priestly  pictures  of  the 
elaborate  order  of  the  Tabernacle. 

3.  lamp  . . .  not  yet  gone  out.  The  lamp  evidently  was 
provided  with  oil  sufficient  only  for  the  dark  hours 
of  one  night. 

ID.  The  Lord  came  and  stood.  The  statement  is 
very  interesting  as  showing  that  the  writer  thought 
in  terms  of  a  revelation  both  audible  and  visible,  and 
not  as  in  a  dream,  as  in  Jacob's  case. 
12.  from  the  beginning  even  unto  the  end.  Lit., 
"beginning  and  ending." 

20.  from  Dan  even  to  Beersheba.  As  Dan  was  in 
the  extreme  north,  by  one  of  the  sources  of  the  Jordan, 
and  Beersheba  in  the  farthest  south,  the  phrase  be- 
came common  as  a  definition  of  the  extreme  limits 
of  the  land. 


FIFTH  SUNDAY  AFTER  TRINITY  115 


XXXVII 
Jf tftfj  ^mhap  ^fter  Zxinitp 

1  Samuel  17.  1-4,  8-11,  32-37,  40-54 

The  most  popular  of  all  the  beautiful  stories  of  the  books 
of  Samuel  is  before  us.  It  is  unfortunately  a  portion  of  a 
narrative  whose  critical  problems  in  respect  not  only  of 
origin  and  authorship,  but  also  of  text  are  not  only  diffi- 
cult but  thus  far  to  a  considerable  degree  apparently  in- 
soluble. It  is  sufficient  here  to  say  that  in  the  transmission 
of  the  text  the  Septuagint,  oldest  of  the  versions,  omits 
no  less  than  thirty  verses  out  of  the  sixty-three  in  the  entire 
story — 17.  1 — 18.  5.  Dogmatism  were  foolish  in  the  face 
of  this  problem,  but  I  prefer  the  longer  text.  It  is  true 
that  I  have  here  omitted  portions,  not  found  in  the  Septua- 
gint, but  this  has  been  done  only  for  practical  purposes  to 
shorten  a  reading  which  even  in  its  present  curtailed  form 
is  likely  to  be  considered  too  long  by  most  ministers.  It 
seems,  however,  impossible  to  shorten  it  more  without 
risk  to  its  intelligibility  when  read  in  public. 

17.  I.  Socoh.     The  modern  Shuweikeh,   about  thirteen 
miles  down  the  narrow  wady  el  Jindy  from  Bethle- 
hem.    At  this  point  three  wadies  come  together  in 
a  plain  about  one  quarter  of  a  mile  broad  and  this 
was  quite  probably  the  scene  of  the  conflict. 
2.  The  Vale  of  Elah  was  probably  the  modern  Wady 
es  Sunt,  at  whose  entrance  from  the  plain  of  Philistia 
stands  the  modern  Tell  es-Safiyeh  which  is  probably 
the  site  of  Gath,  about  eight  miles  west  of  Socoh. 
4.  six  cubits  and  a  span,  that  is,  about  nine  feet  six 
inches  (Kennedy). 
8.  The  challenge  is  based  on  the  idea  that  it  would 


116 OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

be  foolish  for  armies  to  fight  when  the  issue  might 
better  be  decided  by  single  combat. 
34.  when  there  came.    The  idea  is  that  such   en- 
counters with  a  lion  or  bear  were  of  frequent  occur- 
rence. 

40.  Scrip.  The  Hebrew  word  is  yalkut  and  is  unique. 
It  probably  meant  the  bag  in  which  the  slinger  car- 
ried his  ammunition. 

45.  God  of  the  armies  of  Israel.  Observe  how  this 
explains  the  phrase  "Lord  of  hosts,"  and  compare 
note  on  1  Sam.  1.  3,  in  Lesson  XXXV. 

46,  47.  The  verses  have  a  ring  of  assurance.  Je- 
hovah has  no  need  of  such  weapons  or  such  armor 
as  Goliath.  His  power  and  his  willingness  are  ready 
to  make  David's  weak  preparations  sufficient  for 
victory.  The  humble  and  the  weak  may  take  heart; 
when  God  is  with  them  it  matters  not  who  may  be 
against  them. 

52.  Gath.  The  Hebrew  text  reads  "Gai,"  but  the 
Septuagint  has  Gath,  and  this  seems  much  more 
likely,  especially  as  Gath  follows  later  in  the  verse. 
Gath  was  about  eight  miles  nearly  due  west,  and 
Ekron  between  fourteen  and  fifteen  miles  northwest 
of  the  scene  of  conflict. 

54.  to  Jerusalem.  This  is  an  anachronism,  for  at 
this  time  Jerusalem  was  still  in  the  hands  of  the 
Jebusites,  and  was  not  conquered  by  the  Hebrews 
imtil  David  had  reigned  seven  years  in  Hebron  (2 
Sam.  5.  6-10). 

his  armor.     We  hear  later  of  Goliath's  sword  at 
Nob  (1  Sam.  21.  9).    What  a  trophy  that  was! 


SIXTH  SUNDAY  AFTER  TRINITY  117 


XXXVIII 

^ixtjj  ^unbap  ^fter  ^rinitp 

2  Samuel  12.  1-23 

The  story  of  Nathan's  rebuke  of  David,  and  of  the  king's 
actions  in  the  presence  of  an  impending  grief  and  of  the 
bereavement  fully  accomplished  belong  to  the  great  sim- 
plicities and  the  wonderful  displays  of  frankness  in  Holy 
Writ.  No  other  literature  of  antiquity  could  speak  in  this 
way  of  a  king.  The  narrative  belongs  to  the  oldest  por- 
tion of  the  book,  though  it  seems  quite  probable  that  verses 
10-12  may  be  an  addition  intended  more  definitely  to 
point  the  moral  and  enforce  it.  The  whole  passage  2  Sam. 
9-20  is  a  narrative  written  by  some  one  who  lived  in  the 
period.  The  author  may  have  been  Ahimaaz,  son  of  Zadok, 
or  perhaps  a  member  of  the  family  of  Abiathar.  It  is  the 
greatest  historical  writing  which  has  come  out  of  the  Ancient 
Oriental  world. 

12.  3.  one   little   ewe  lamb.    Such  pet  lambs  are  still 
to  be  seen  in  Syrian  households. 
6.  fourfold.     The  Septuagint  reads  "sevenfold,"  but 
I  do  not  venture  to  change,  though  it  does  seem  more 
probably  correct. 

8.  thy  master's  wives.  There  is  no  hint  elsewhere 
that  David  received  Saul's  wives,  but  this  would 
accord  with  ancient  usage.     Compare  2  Sam.  16.  21f. 

13.  put  away  thy  sin.  It  was  not  forgiven.  It  was 
*'put  away,"  so  that  it  should  not  bring  David  down 
to  death;  but  the  consequences  were  still  to  work 
themselves  out,  and  this  was  manifested  in  the  death 
of  the  child. 

14.  despised  the  I>ord.     R.  V.,  "hast  given  occasion 


118 OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

to  the  enemies  of  the  Lord  to  blaspheme."  But 
the  Hebrew  word  does  not  mean  this.  It  is  intensely 
strong,  "despised,"  "scorned,"  but  the  early  editors 
toned  it  down. 

17.  the  elders,  that  is,  the  courtiers  and  higher 
officers  of  the  court. 

20.  the  house  of  the  Lord.  The  tent  which  David 
had  pitched  for  the  ark  (2  Sam.  6.  17). 
23.  David  takes  what  consolation  he  may  out  of 
the  belief  in  a  shadowy  existence  after  death  in 
Sheol,  "the  house  of  the  meeting  for  all  living"  (Job 
30.  23  R.  v.,  margin),  as  Jacob  hoped  to  go  to  Joseph 
(Gen.  37.  35).  There  was  not  much  to  hope  for  in 
the  Sheol  as  these  early  writers  conceived  it,  but 
to  the  heart  of  all  normal  human  folk  any  continued 
existence  is  better  than  extinction.  The  saddest 
of  all  thoughts  to  the  ancient  Hebrews  was  that  in 
death  all  connection  between  the  dead  and  God  was 
cut  off.  "In  death  there  is  no  remembrance  of  thee: 
in  Sheol  who  shall  give  thee  thanks?"  (Psa.  6.  5.) 
"For  Sheol  cannot  praise  thee,  death  cannot  cel- 
ebrate thee:  they  that  go  down  to  the  pit  cannot 
hope  for  thy  truth"  (Isa.  38.  18).  So  long  as  man 
was  upon  earth,  in  the  land  of  the  living,  he  might 
commune  with  his  Maker;  when  death  had  snatched 
him  away  the  fellowship  was  broken.  See  how  great 
was  the  advance  of  New  Testament  teaching  over  this. 


SEVENTH  SUNDAY  AFTER  TRINITY        119 


XXXIX 

2  Samuel  18.  1-15,  24-33 

Here,  again,  in  a  vivid  and  interesting  story  we  have 
one  of  the  oldest  portions  of  the  book,  a  part  of  the  great 
historical  section  in  chapters  9-20. 

i8.  5.  To  David,  Absalom  is  still  only  a  boy,  and  Davdd 
loves  him  more  than  self,  and  more  than  all  his  loyal 
soldiers,  though  Absalom  had  no  filial  piety  in  his 
nature. 
6.  forest  of  Ephraim.    The  location  is  unknown  to  us. 

8.  forest  devoured.  The  meaning  is  not  quite  cer- 
tain, but  would  seem  to  be  that  the  flight  took  place 
over  a  rocky,  jungle-clad  surface,  where  clefts  proved 
traps  unto  death  for  panic-stricken  men. 

9.  Absalom  on  the  back  of  a  mule  was  caught  and 
left  suspended  by  the  hair  in  a  cleft  of  a  low  spreading 
tree,  while  the  mule  rushed  on.  In  that  state  he  was 
helpless  in  the  face  of  any  attack. 

15.  Joab*s  stroke  must  have  killed  Absalom  at  once, 
and  the  narrative  in  this  verse  seems  to  record  un- 
necessary acts,  and  the  verse  has  therefore  been 
held  an  interpolation  (so  H.  P.  Smith).  It  may 
be  said,  however,  that  history  is  well  supplied  with 
instances  of  killing  the  dead  after  death  in  an  excess 
of  fury. 

24.  between  the  two  gates.  The  gate  of  an  Oriental 
city  was  a  massive  construction  extending  both  out- 
ward and  inward  beyond  the  city  walls.  It  was 
usually  arched  over  within  and  had  two  gates,  an 
inner  and  an  outer,  between  which  were  the  stone 


no OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

benches  occupied  by  the  city  magistrates.  On  one 
of  these  sat  David  anxious  for  news.  Above  was  a 
battlemented  tower  on  which  stood  the  watchman. 
26.  upon  the  gate.  I  have  followed  the  Lucian  text 
of  the  Septuagint,  to  secure  a  better  reading.  See 
R.  V.  for  the  ordinary  text. 

28.  drew  nigh.  The  ordinary  text  reads  "called," 
but  the  Lucian  Septuagint  has  the  much  preferable 
reading,  "drew  nigh."  The  Hebrew  words  are  much 
alike  and  would  be  readily  confused. 

who  hath  delivered.  It  is  a  declaration  of  victory, 
but  conveys  also  a  hint  of  Absalom's  fate,  w^hich  the 
king  does  not  notice. 

31.  the  Cushite.  Anybody  from  the  far  southern 
world  would  be  vaguely  called  a  Cushite,  but  a 
Negro  is  quite  probably  here  intended.  He  has  the 
courage  to  tell  the  king  the  whole  truth  about  Ab- 
salom's fate. 

33.  as  he  wept.  R.  V.,  "as  he  went."  I  have  read 
"wept,"  following  the  Septuagint  Lucian.  It  is  far 
more  probable  than  the  ordinary  text  and  also  more 
expressive. 


EIGHTH  SUNDAY  AFTER  TRINITY         121 


XL 

€tg(it!)  ^unbap  ^!tet  tlxinitp 

1  Chronicles  29.  1-20 

The  relations  between  God  and  man  are  too  wide  and 
too  deep  to  be  compassed  in  the  thought  of  any  one  man. 
Every  man  who  attempts  to  conceive  the  divine  revelation 
sees  it  necessarily  after  his  own  ways  of  thinking.  The 
prophets  of  the  Old  Testament  present  a  view  of  God's 
ways  characteristic  of  their  own  thought,  and  it  is  well 
that  priests  have  done  the  same.  In  the  biblical  study  of 
recent  years  the  emphasis  has  been  largely  placed  upon  the 
prophetical  books,  and  this  was  wise  and  just.  It  would, 
however,  be  very  unjust  never  to  hear  a  priestly  word  out 
of  the  great  book  of  the  priests — the  books  of  Chronicles. 
So  it  happens  that  the  lesson  of  to-day  comes  out  of  these 
books,  which  were  in  process  of  writing  or  compilation  for 
a  series  of  years,  probably  concluded  about  B.  C.  250,  and 
therefore  quite  the  latest  books,  in  point  of  date,  in  the 
Old  Testament.  As  historical  sources  they  stand  far  be- 
hind the  books  of  Samuel  and  Kings,  yet  their  heightened 
color  and  rich  adornment  of  the  earlier  and  simpler  story 
have  a  value  of  their  own,  at  least  in  revealing  what  devout 
men  thought  of  their  ancient  heroes  in  their  later  period. 
Nor  should  we  forget  that  they  were  far  closer  to  the  events 
than  we,  and  that  they  have  a  message  to  our  age  as  to 
their  own. 

29.  I.  the  palace.  This  word  for  the  Temple  occurs 
but  twice,  here  and  in  verse  19.  The  most  frequent 
name  for  the  Temple  is  simply  "house"  (Hebrew, 
Bayith),  but  frequently  also  it  is  called  by  an  ancient 
Semitic  and  Sumerian  word  which  means  literally 
"great  house"  (Hekal), 


m_ OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

2.  onyx.  Some  would  translate  "beryl,*'  but  that  is 
equally  uncertain. 

3.  mine  own.  David  sets  the  example  by  giving  of 
his  own  private  fortune. 

4.  Ophir,  the  Somali  coast  of  Africa  and  the  south- 
western coast  of  Arabia.  Others  would  say  the 
eastern  coast  of  Arabia,  on  the  Persian  Gulf.  The 
location  is  doubtful. 

5.  to  consecrate.  Hebrew,  literally,  "to  fill  his 
hand,"  that  is,  to  fill  one's  hand  with  an  office,  hence 
a  technical  term  used  for  consecrating  to  the  priest- 
hood (compare  Exod.  28.  41,  32.  29,  Lev.  8.  33). 

7.  of  gold  five  thousand  talents.  The  amount  is 
enormous,  for  by  the  heavy  standard  this  would 
be  about  one  hundred  and  fifty  million  dollars,  or 
by  the  light  standard  half  that  sum. 

darics.  A  Persian  gold  coin  worth  a  little  over 
five  dollars.  The  amount  seems  so  large  that  one 
wonders  whether  the  numbers  have  not  been  raised, 
as  we  know  they  have  in  certain  other  cases.  The 
transmission  of  numbers  is  both  difficult  and  tempting. 
10-19.  David's  prayer.  Perhaps  a  piece  of  some 
ancient  liturgy,  and  still  reflected  in  some  of  the 
older  forms  of  the  modern  Jewish  liturgy  (so  Oesterley). 


NINTH  SUNDAY  AFTER  TRINITY  123 


XLI 

^tntf)  ^unbap  ^fter  tlTttnttp 

1  Kings  3.  4-15 

This  lesson,  taken  from  the  book  of  Kings,  quite  prob- 
ably had  its  origin  in  the  book  of  the  Acts  of  Solomon, 
which  was  an  accomit  of  the  chief  events  of  his  reign  and 
perhaps  in  annalist ic  form.  However  that  may  be,  it  pre- 
served a  sparkling  gem  in  this  story. 

3.  4.  Gibeon,  the  modern  el-Jib  in  the  territory  of  Ben- 
jamin and  about  six  miles  northwest  of  Jerusalem. 
It  was  the  "great  high  place,*'  for  it  was  near  the 
capital  and  was  also  centrally  located.  The  word 
"high-place'*  signifies  a  sanctuary,  usually  on  a  hilltop, 
which  had  been  used  by  the  Canaanites,  and  then 
taken  over  by  the  Hebrews  and  consecrated  to  Jehovah, 
thousand  burnt  offerings.  Probably  not  to  be  taken 
literally  as  a  thousand;  it  meant  more  probably  simply 
a  large  or  very  large  number.  Compare  hecatomb  in 
Greek. 

7.  little  child.     Not  to  be  taken  literally.     It  means 
simply  a  child  in  kingly  experience. 

go  out  or  come  in.  A  proverbial  expression  for 
everyday  life.  Life  consists  of  going  out  to  work 
in  the  morning  and  coming  in  to  rest  in  the  evening. 
9.  understanding  heart.  Lit.,  a  hearing  heart.  In 
Hebrew  psychology  the  heart  is  the  seat  of  thought, 
not,  as  with  us,  of  emotion.  The  writer  makes  it 
clear  that  this  understanding  is  God's  gift,  as  is  all 
else  material  or  spiritual.  The  apostle  numbers 
"wisdom"  among  the  gifts  of  the  Spirit  (1  Cor.  12. 
4-11),  and  the  epistle  of  James  teaches  that  it  is  to 
be  sought  in  prayer  (1.  5). 


m OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

to  judge.     To  give  decision  was  the  final  duty  of 
a  king,  and  in  time  of  peace  practically  his  chief  duty. 

11.  to  discern  judgment.  Lit.,  "to  hear  judgment," 
is  to  hear  and  then  understand  on  which  side  truth 
and  justice  lay. 

12.  wise  and  understanding  heart.  Solomon's  pros- 
perous reign  justifies  the  prediction  in  the  main.  He 
was,  however,  far  from  wise  all  the  while,  and  it  is 
to  be  remembered  that  his  religious  policy  (11.  4-8) 
was  seriously  mistaken  and  that  he  left  an  evil  repute 
to  his  son  (12.  4). 

14.  as  thy  father  David  did  walk.  David  became  a 
model  for  later  kings  in  his  faithfulness  to  Jehovah, 
which  was  manifested  (a)  in  his  care  of  the  ark  (2 
Sam.  6)  and  in  his  desire  to  build  a  temple  (2  Sam.  7). 
These  were  positive  deeds,  but  he  was  also  faithful 
in  refraining  from  the  worship  of  foreign  gods.  By 
comparison  with  David,  Abijam,  Amaziah,  and  Ahaz 
are  reproved  while  Asa,  Hezekiah,  and  Josiah  are 
approved  in  the  book  of  Kings.  (Compare,  for  exam- 
ple, 1  Kings  15.  3,  2  Kings  14.  3, 16.  2  and  15.  11,  18.  3, 
and  22.  2.) 

lengthen  thy  days.     Solomon  reigned  forty  years. 

15.  peace  offerings.  Offerings  in  times  of  peace, 
thank-offerings,  feasts  of  rejoicing. 


TENTH  SUNDAY  AFTER  TRINITY  U5 

XLII 
(JTentli  ibmtiap  ^fter  Wvinitp 

1  Kings  6.  1,  38;  8.  12,  13,  22,  23,  27-40,  54-58 

It  would  seem  a  pity  to  lose  from  public  reading  the 
noble  and  beautiful  prayer  which  some  kindly  hands  have 
put  together  chiefly  in  the  spirit  and  somewhat  also  after 
the  form  of  the  glorious  book  of  Deuteronomy.     Yet  is  the 
prayer  very  long,  and  some  portions  less  instructive  for 
modern  ears  than  are  others,  and  he  who  would  make  a 
lesson  book  with  any  possibility  of  being  read  must  leave 
out  much  or  have  small  hope  that  any  will  be  read.     The 
effort  here  made  was  to  take  an  introductory  word  of  chap- 
ter 6,  by  which  the  hearer  might  be  told  what  was  to  come, 
and  then  certain  sections  from  the  beautiful  prayer  most 
likely  to  give  interest  and  instruction  to  the  ordinary  hearer. 
6.  I.  four    hundred    and    eightieth    year.    This    is    the 
earliest  date  given  in  the  Bible.     It  was  reckoned  on 
the  basis  of  twelve  generations  of  forty  years  each,  and 
it  is  therefore  a  round  number  and  not  an  exact  date. 
2,  38.  Ziv  and  Bui.     These  names  of  months  belong 
to  the  ancient  Hebrew  calendar  supplanted  in  the  Exile 
by  Babylonian  names.     Ziv  is  the  month  of  flowers — 
our  April-May  in  Palestine,  and  Bui  is  perhaps  "rain," 
hence  October-November. 
8.  12,  13.  These  verses  are  intensely  interesting,  as  they 
contain  in  imperfect  form  an  ancient  epigram  which  may 
well  have  been  the  identical  words  originally  uttered 
by  Solomon.     The  Septuagint  preserves  them  thus : 
"Jehovah  set  the  sun  in  heaven. 
He  said  he  would  dwell  in  thick  darkness; 
Build  thou  my  house,  a  house  suitable  for  thyself 
To  dwell  (forever). 
Behold,  is  it  not  written  in  the  book  of  the  Song  ?  " 


126  OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 


Wellhausen  has  suggested  that  this  should  be  Book 
of  Jashar  to  which  we  owe  David's  eulogy  on  Saul 
(2  Sam.  I.  18). 

22.  Solomon  stood.  This  was  the  ancient  attitude  in 
prayer,  the  hands  being  outstretched  heavenward. 

29.  My  name  shall  be  there,  that  is,  when  man  pro- 
nounces God's  name  in  prayer,  God  will  be  there  to 
respond  to  the  call. 

30.  forgive.  God  must  first  hear,  and  then  forgive, 
before  he  can  answer  prayer.  He  can,  in  other  words, 
answer  a  sinful  man  only  when  the  man  has  first 
received  forgiveness. 

31.  an  oath.  The  reference  is  to  the  ancient  custom 
of  requiring  an  oath  when  guilt  was  doubtful.  See 
Exod.  22.  7-12. 

32.  condemning . . .  justif5ring.  God  is  besought  to 
make  the  ordeal  by  oath  a  sure  indication  of  guilt 
or  innocence. 

34.  let  them  remain  in.  R.  V.,  "bring  them  again 
imto,*'  but  this  would  imply  the  Exile.  I  have  there- 
fore boldly  accepted  an  emendation  of  vowel  points 
only,  not  really  changing  the  text,  which  gives  the 
translation  as  above  (so  Klostermann,  Benzinger).  The 
meaning  would  then  be,  "spare  them  the  terrible," 
and  frequently  applied,  method  of  captivity  by  a 
victorious  enemy  and  then  deportation. 
37.  blasting.  The  drying  up  of  vegetation  by  the 
east  wind  from  the  desert. 

locust . . .  caterpiller.    Two  words  for  "locust"  no 
longer  to  be  differentiated. 

any  of  their  gates,  following  the  Septuagint,  instead 
of  the  R.  V.  "in  the  land  of  their  cities." 

plague.    Lit.,  "blow,"  a  calamity  sent  from  God, 
and  not  confined  to  pestilence. 
54.  kneeling.    Compare  verse  22  where  it  was  said 


TENTH  SUNDAY  AFTER  TRINITY  127 


that  Solomon  stood.  Though  standing  seems  to  have 
been  the  usual  ancient  posture,  there  are  not  wanting 
allusions  to  "kneeling,"  see,  for  example,  1  Kings  19. 
18;  Isa.  45.  23. 

55.  blessed.  Normally  the  giving  of  a  solemn  bless- 
ing was  reserved  for  the  priests  (see  Num.  6.  22-27) 
but  there  are  not  wanting  other  instances  to  place 
with  this  one  in  which  the  blessing  was  pronounced 
by  a  layman,  so,  for  example,  by  Joshua  (Josh.  22.  6) 
and  by  David  (2  Sam.  6.  18). 

56.  rest.  So  R.  V.,  but  rather  a  resting  place;  that  is, 
Canaan.     Compare  Isa.  11.  10  R.  V. 

58.  incline  our  hearts.  God  in  the  Old  Testament 
doctrine  may  turn  men's  hearts  either  away  from  or 
toward  himself.  (See  1  Kings  18.  37,  and  as  the 
translation  there  is  rather  obscure,  see  also  Isa.  63.  7.) 
The  diflaculty  about  free  will  is  not  yet  faced. 


128  OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 


XLIII 

1  Kings  10.  1-13 

We  do  not  know  whence  this  story  came  into  the  canonical 
book  of  Kings,  but  it  may  quite  well  have  been  found  in 
the  Book  of  the  Acts  of  Solomon.  It  would  be  an  honor 
to  any  ancient  writer  of  biography,  and  has  deeply  interested 
the  moderm  Oriental  world,  for  the  Arabs  have  built  it  up 
by  imagination  and  fancy  almost  into  a  separate  literature 
with  every  sort  of  fantastic  elaboration. 

ID.  I.  Sheba.  A  great  kingdom — mainly  in  southern 
Arabia,  but  extending  far  enough  northward  to  feel 
in  later  days  than  Solomon's  the  impact  of  the  ruth- 
less Assyrian  conqueror. 

concerning  the  name  of  the  Lord.  The  words  are 
difficult  in  themselves,  and  as  they  do  not  appear 
in  2  Chron.  9.  1  are  probably  an  addition  here. 

hard  questions;  that  is,  riddles — a  favorite  Oriental 
method    of    appraising    intellectual    quickness    and 
penetration  of  mind. 
2.  spices,  or,  rather,  balsams. 

very  much   gold   and  precious   stones.    Typical 
products  of  southwest  Arabia. 

5.  food.     See  1  Kings  4.  22,  23. 
ministers.     Here  "waiters." 

his  burnt  offerings.  R.  V.,  "ascent,"  but  this  is 
surely  wrong.  I  have  translated  as  the  Hebrew 
seems  to  intend. 

6.  acts.    The  Hebrew  word  means  "words"  and  also 
"acts."    Either  meaning  would  serve  here. 

8.  thy  men.    The  reading  in  the  Lucian  text  and  in 


ELEVENTH  SUNDAY  AFTER  TRINIT\       129 

the  Syriac  was  *'thy  wives,"  which  seems  much  more 
probable,  but  I  have  not  ventured  to  introduce  it 
into  the  text. 

9.  justice  and  righteousness.  R.  V.,  "judgment  and 
justice,"  but  the  former  better  represents  the  Hebrew. 

11.  navy  of  Hiram.  This  means  the  merchant  ships 
of  the  Phoenicians,  who  traded  not  only  in  the  Medi- 
terranean, but  also  in  the  Red  Sea. 

Ophir.  The  location  still  remains  doubtful.  If 
it  is  to  be  identified  with  the  land  of  Punt  it  would 
probably  be  the  Somali  coast  and  the  opposite  coast 
of  Arabia. 

almug,  unknown.  It  has  been  identified  with 
ebony  and  even  with  coral.  It  may  have  been  red 
sandal  wood,  which  is  still  used  in  India  for  making 
musical  instruments. 

12.  pillars.  An  obscure  word  of  uncertain  meaning. 
In  the  parallel  passage  (2  Chron.  9.  11)  the  word  is 
"terraces." 


130 OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

XLIV 

^toelftb  ibunbap  iSfter  Ztinitv 

1  Kings  12 
[Alternative  p.  190.] 

The  passage  is  taken  from  the  most  ancient  portion  of 
the  book  of  Kings  and  though  we  do  not  know  who  wrote 
it,  nor  yet  when  it  was  written,  it  seems  worthy  to  be  com- 
pared with  the  great  passage  2  Sam.  9-20;  1  Kings  1,  2, 
the  finest  historical  narrative  which  has  come  down  to  us 
out  of  the  ancient  literature  of  the  Orient. 

Solomon  was  dead,  and  his  son  Rehoboam  wished  to 
ascend  the  throne,  and  must  first  secure  the  people's  con- 
sent. It  is  well  to  remember  that  this  seems  to  have  been 
a  well-grounded  ancient  custom  in  Israel.  David  was 
first  made  king  by  the  northern  tribes  (2  Sam.  5.  1-3)  and 
into  their  territory  Rehoboam  now  goes  to  seek  their  ac- 
ceptance of  himself  as  king  over  the  whole  land. 

12.  I.  Shechem.  From  the  most  ancient  times  a  city 
of  great  importance  in  history  and  in  religion,  situated 
in  the  most  beautiful  valley  in  all  Palestine,  at  the 
foot  of  Mount  Gerizim,  and  now  occupied  by  the 
modern  Nablus. 

all  Israel,  that  is,  Judah  as  well  as  Israel.  We 
do  not  know  how  such  an  assembly  was  called. 
4.  yoke  grievous.  Compare  1  Sam.  8.  11-18. 
8.  young  men.  Lit.,  "boys" — a  contemptuous  ex- 
pression. It  sounds  odd  when  one  considers  that 
Rehoboam*s  age  is  given  in  the  Hebrew  text  (14.  21) 
as  forty-one  years  at  his  accession.  The  parallel  in 
the  best  Septuagint  text  (B)  (12.  24),  makes  him  only 
sixteen  at  his  accession.  This  age  would  accord 
better  with  this  passage. 


TWELFTH  SUNDAY  AFTER  TRINITY        131 

13.  roughly.  This  mad  answer  was  perhaps  in  no 
small  part  a  reflection  of  the  ways  of  Solomon. 
But  what  Solomon  might  dare  to  do,  it  did  not  fol- 
low that  his  weak  son  might  also  venture. 

15.  brought  about  of  the  Lord;  that  is,  it  was  prov- 
idential. 

16.  What  portion  have  we?  A  watchword,  the  same 
as  used  by  Sheba,  the  Benjamite,  when  he  led  a 
revolt  (2  Sam.  20.  1). 

18.  Adoram,  the  same  as  Adoniram  (4.  6,  5.  14). 
He  was  the  head  of  the  levy.  To  have  sent  him  to 
quell  a  revolt  could  only  result  in  making  the  revolt 
a  successful  revolution,  for  the  people  would  con- 
strue it  as  a  threat  that  Rehoboam  really  did  intend 
to  carry  out  his  threat  and  oppress  them  heavily. 

19.  unto  this  day.  A  day  long  remembered  as  a 
tragedy  (Isa.  7.  17). 

20.  Judah  only.  So  had  Rehoboam's  madness  de- 
stroyed the  kingdom  which  Saul  had  founded,  David 
had  made  great,  and  Solomon  famous. 


132  OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 


XLV 

1  Kings  17 

The  lesson  is  taken  from  the  great  series  of  passages 
relating  to  Elijah  which  came  originally,  as  seems  probable, 
into  the  books  of  Kings  from  a  biography  of  Elijah.  There 
need  be  no  fear  of  magnifying  overmuch  the  greatness  of 
Elijah,  for  they  who  call  him  the  greatest  of  the  prophets 
have  much  to  support  their  judgment.  It  was  he  who 
saved  IsraeFs  faith  at  a  time  when  its  jeopardy  was  greater 
than  ever  before.  The  court  of  Ahab  would  follow  the  exam- 
ple of  the  king  who  sustained  his  queen  Jezebel  in  Baal 
worship,  and  what  the  royal  house  did  was  sure  to  find 
imitation  by  the  people.  To  break  down  that  fatal  nexus 
and  save  the  religion  of  Jehovah  was  Elijah's  great  mis- 
sion, and  he  accomplished  it. 

17.  I.  from  Tishbe  of  Gilead.  R.  V.,  "of  the  sojourners 
of  Gilead."  I  have  followed  the  much  preferable 
Septuagint  text.  "Elijah"  means  "Jehovah  is  God," 
and  this  was  his  watchword  through  his  whole  career. 
Tishbe  is  probably  to  be  identified  with  Istiby  where 
there  is  still  to  be  seen  a  ruined  shrine  called  Mar 
Ely  as. 

3.  brook  Cherith.  The  site  is  unknown,  but  was 
probably  in  one  of  the  wadies  east  of  Jordan. 
6.  the  ravens.  Many  would  change  the  vowel  points 
and  read  Arabians  as  those  who  provided  the  prophet's 
food.  The  expedient  is  too  transparent;  the  whole 
story  of  Elijah  is  singularly  filled  with  the  miraculous, 
and  to  remove  this  portion  and  leave  the  rest  is 
useless. 


THIRTEENTH  SUNDAY  AFTER  TRINITY    133 

9.  Zarephath  (Sarepta,  Luke  4.  26).  Situated  about 
nine  miles  south  of  Sidon,  the  modern  site  being 
named  Sarafend. 

12.  cake.     A  round,  flat  bread,  baked  on  a  hot  stone. 

13.  The  prophet  makes  a  severe  trial  of  the  woman*s 
faith.  She  sustains  the  trial  and  is  well  rewarded 
(verse  15). 

18.  What  have  I  to  do  with  thee?  This  was  an  in- 
vitation to  depart. 

to  bring  my  sin  to  remembrance.  This  does  not 
mean  some  specific  sin  of  the  mother,  but  the  deep- 
seated  general  guilt  of  human  nature  which  she  thinks 
might  have  been  overlooked  by  the  Almighty  had 
the  prophet  not  been  there.  Compare  Luke  5.  8. 
21.  stretched  himself  upon.  See  2  Kings  4.  34f. 
and  Acts  20.  10.  The  Septuagint  reads  "breathed 
into  the  child." 

24.  is  truth;  that  is,  that  Jehovah's  word  is  truly 
in  the  prophet's  mouth.  The  woman  now  "knows" 
from  this  great  experience  of  God's  power,  and  of 
the  prophet's  power  with  God.  She  had  doubted 
before  because  of  her  dreadful  experiences,  but  now 
is  reassured. 


134  OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 


XLVI 

Jfourteentf)  ^unbap  ^fter  Erinitp 

1  Kings  18.  1,  2,  17-39 
[Alternative  p.  193.] 

This  lesson  from  the  canonical  book  of  Kings  came 
originally  in  all  probability  from  a  prophetic  life  of  Elijah. 
To  whomsoever  it  may  have  been  due  in  the  beginning 
high  praise  is  due.  The  narrative  has  verve  and  movement 
and  rises  grandly  toward  its  climax  with  even  a  flash  of 
humor  as  the  stern  prophet  from  Gilead  mocks  the  enemies 
of  Jehovah. 

i8.  17.  troubler  of  Israel.  Ahab  ascribes  the  famine  to 
Elijah  and  calls  him  "troubler"  in  the  same  Hebrew 
word  used  of  Achan  (Josh.  7.  25). 

18.  the  Baals.  The  plural  is  used  to  signify  the 
number  of  local  deities  who  were  saluted  as  Baal, 
that  is,  Lord.  Each  of  these  had  either  a  personal 
name,  like  Melkarth,  Baal  of  Tyre,  Chemosh,  Baal 
of  Moab,  or  they  were  known  by  the  town  or  vil- 
lage which  paid  them  honor.  In  the  early  days 
the  title  Baal  was  even  given  to  Jehovah  (Hos.  2.  16) 
but  the  prophets  saw  the  danger  and  forbade  it. 

19.  Carmel.  The  exact  spot  intended  here  is  not 
known,  but  it  is  interesting  to  speculate  that  it  may 
have  been  at  el  Muhraka  (the  place  of  burning) 
at  the  foot  of  which  is  Tell  el-Kasis  (the  priest's 
mound)  where  tradition  locates  the  place  of  the 
slaughter  of  the  priests  (so  Skinner).  El  Muhraka 
is  about  four  miles  from  the  highest  point  of  Carmel, 
but  is  itself  sixteen  hundred  feet  high. 

Asherah.  The  name  of  a  goddess  known  among 
the    Canaanites    under   the   name    of    Ashirai,    and 


FOURTEENTH  SUNDAY  AFTER  TRINITY    135 

corresponding  to  the  goddess  Ishtar  of  the  Assyrians, 
who  had  many  functions,  even  a  war-goddess,  but 
was  also  Mother-goddess  and  much  reverenced  by 
women  in  travail. 

22.  I,  even  I  only.  There  were  indeed  others  who 
were  silently  faithful,  but  there  was  apparently  only 
Elijah  who  had  the  boldness  to  speak  out  loudly 
for  Jehovah. 

26.  limped.  The  Hebrew  word  describes  a  slow 
dance  about  the  altar. 

27.  musing.  The  same  word  is  translated  "medi- 
tate" in  Gen.  24.  63. 

gone  aside.    The  Hebrew  word  occurs  only  here, 
and  the  meaning  is,  therefore,  uncertain. 

28.  cut  themselves,  perhaps  a  remnant  of  an  ancient 
blood  covenant  with  the  god,  but  perhaps  only  an 
attempt  to  excite  the  god's  interest.  I  have  per- 
sonally seen  Mohammedan  fanatics  so  cut  them- 
selves in  a  religious  procession. 

30.  he  repaired.  There  had  been  a  sanctuary  of 
Jehovah  on  the  spot  before. 

32.  be  sown  with.  The  explanation  in  the  Mishnah 
would  give  this  as  a  definite  area,  about  nine  hundred 
square  yards  (Benzinger).  It  would  seem,  then, 
that  this  defines  the  space  inclosed  by  the  trench. 
36,  37.  It  is  a  double  prayer.  Elijah  would  have  his 
own  prophetic  authority  vindicated,  and  he  was 
quite  right  in  this,  for  only  so  would  his  future  labor 
be  made  useful,  and,  in  the  second  place,  he  prays 
God  now,  in  this  moment,  to  win  back  his  wayward 
people. 


136  OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 


XLVII 

Jf ifteentb  ^unba|»  ^ftcr  Zxinit^ 

1  Kings  19 

In  this  lesson,  as  in  the  last,  we  are  still  following  the 

ancient  biography  of  Elijah,  and  are  again  deeply  indebted 

to  its  unknown  author  for  a  passage  of  the  highest  interest 

and   instruction.     There   are,   indeed,   points   of   obscurity 

in  the  story,  but  the  main  conceptions  are  clear  enough, 

and  they  are  true  to  human  nature.     Elijah  had  had  a 

great   triumph   on   Mount   Carmel,   and   instead   of   going 

away  in  full  elation  as  a  victor,  he  flees  to  save  his  life. 

He  has  learned  by  bitter  experience  how  little  a  man  can 

accomplish,  and  sinks  into  despair  at  the  failure  of  his 

great  hopes.     In  the  desert  he  lies  down  utterly  broken  in 

spirit.     Let  those  mock  at  the  sorry  spectacle  who  have 

never  met  a  supreme  test  of  faith.     There  at  Beersheba 

he  perceives  that  his  supreme  need  is  God,  and  it  was  natural 

for  him  to  seek  God  where  he  had  manifested  himself  to 

Moses.     In  no  other  story  is  Elijah  more  natural,  more 

human,  and  at  the  same  time  more  noble  or  more  wise. 

IQ.  2.  It  was  an  idle  and  foolish  threat,  for  she  did  not 

really  dare  to  slay  him  after  such  a  public  display 

of  his  power,  but  merely  desired  to  frighten  him  away. 

In  the  Septuagint  the  threat  is  preceded  by  the  apt 

phrase,  "As  sure  as  you  are  Elijah,  I  am  Jezebel." 

3.  The  threat  succeeded.     "He  was  afraid,"  so  the 

Septuagint,  and  surely  correctly. 

to  Beersheba.  The  southern  limit  of  cultivation 
where  the  desert  meets  the  town,  and  always  counted 
as  the  southern  limit  of  the  country,  as  Dan  was 
the  northern. 


FIFTEENTH  SUNDAY  AFTER  TRINITY      137 

4.  broom  bush.  R.  V.,  "juniper  tree,"  but  the 
rotem  of  the  Hebrew  corresponds  to  the  retem  of 
the  Arabic  and  signifies  a  Genista  or  broom  bush 
which  grows  abundantly  in  the  wretched  dry  wadies 
and  gives  a  bit  of  shade. 

8.  Horeb  the  mount  of  God,  so  always  in  the  Ephraim- 
istic  writer,  while  the  Judaistic  writes  "Sinai."  It 
was  the  place  of  the  first  covenant  between  God 
and  his  people,  and  Elijah  would  fain  come  near  to 
God  as  Moses  in  the  beginning.  The  distance  is  only 
about  one  hundred  and  seventy  miles,  or  even  less. 
He  could  have  covered  it  in  ten  days;  that  he  took 
forty  only  shows  that  he  was  hiding,  or  was  in  such 
a  perturbation  of  mind  and  spirit  as  to  lie  for  days 
troubled  and  weary. 

12.  still  small  voice.  Hebrew,  a  "sound  of  thin 
silence."  Compare  Job  4.  16,  "silence  and  a  voice," 
which  is  a  hendiadys  meaning  the  "silence  of  a  voice." 

15.  Go;  return.  Elijah  was  not  to  remain  at  the 
mount  in  lonely  contemplation  of  God  and  in  medi- 
tation. He  was  rather  to  go  back  to  his  duty.  So 
was  it  with  the  disciples  on  the  mount  of  Trans- 
figuration. First  the  vision  and  then  back  to  duty 
and  labor! 

16.  anoint  Hazael.  He  was  to  have  an  important 
share  in  bringing  the  Baal  worship  to  an  end,  for 
he  represents  the  Aramaeans  who  were  to  attack 
Ahab*s  kingdom  and  so  weaken  it  that  Jehu,  who 
was  a  sure  opponent  of  Baalism,  could  get  the  throne, 
and  Elisha  could  begin  a  new  prophetic  mission. 
But  the  order  of  events  was  really  otherwise,  for 
Jehu's  revolt  precedes  Hazael's  attack,  from  which 
he  and  his  people  suffered  sorely.  This  failure  of  a 
prediction  to  be  true  to  the  chronological  order  is 
quite  the  usual,  or  at  least  common,  thing  in  Old 


138 OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

Testament  prophecy.  It  is  often  a  valuable  proof  of 
an  early  date,  for  a  writer  after  the  event  would  have 
got  the  correct  order. 

shalt  thou  anoint.  He  was  told  to  anoint  Elisha, 
but  there  is  no  known  instance  of  a  prophet  being 
anointed.  The  symbolism  here  used  is  the  putting  of 
a  mantle  upon  his  shoulders.  Kings  were  anointed, 
not  prophets.  The  symbol  matters  little;  there  can 
be  no  doubt  of  Elisha*s  commission  as  a  prophet;  his 
career  amply  proved  it.  Elisha  was  said  to  be  of 
Abel-meholah,  which  seems  to  have  been  in  the 
Jordan  valley  and  was  located  by  Jerome  about  ten 
Roman  miles  south  of  Scythopolis  (Beth-shan). 
i8.  seven  thousand.  Elijah  in  his  bitter  discourage- 
ment thought  that  he  alone  remained  as  God's  cham- 
pion. But  God  knew  of  seven  thousand  others. 
"The  kingdom  of  God  is  always  stronger  than  it 
seems." 


SIXTEENTH  SUNDAY  AFTER  TRINITY      139 


XLVIII 

^ixteentft  ^unbap  ^fter  tKrinitp 

2  Kings  5.  1-19 

This  passage,  one  of  the  favorite  stories  out  of  Israel's 
history,  came  into  the  books  of  Kings  out  of  a  long-lost 
biography  of  the  prophet  Elisha,  of  unknown  date  and 
origin. 

5.  I.  honorable.     Lit.,  a  man  of  respect. 

Syria.  The  Hebrew  is  always  Aram,  and  it  is  most 
imfortunate  that  Syria  and  Syrians  ever  came  into 
the  English  versions.  It  should  always  be  Aram  and 
the  Aramaeans,  the  people  and  country  north  of  Israel 
whose  chief  city  was  Damascus. 

2.  gone  out  in  bands.  Made  raids  and  took  slaves, 
though  the  two  nations  were  at  peace. 

6.  and  thou  shalt.  R.  V.,  "that  thou  mayest."  But 
the  tone  is  quite  peremptory.  It  is  a  masterful 
Aramaean  overlord  dictating  to  a  petty  king  of  Israel. 

7.  seeketh  a  quarrel.  Israel's  king  thinks  that  the 
Aramaean  king  intends  to  seek  a  cdsus  belli,  in  the 
hope  of  restoring  a  real  overlordship  over  Samaria. 
10.  sent  a  messenger.  The  prophet  does  not  com- 
municate directly,  but  through  a  servant,  and  Naaman 
took  it  as  an  insult.  He  had  been  accustomed  to 
send  servants,  not  receive  them.  Furthermore,  he  felt 
himself  great  enough  to  deserve  a  conspicuous  healing 
at  the  hands  of  the  God  of  an  inferior  people  like  the 
Israelites. 

be  thou  clean.  It  is  an  imperative  (compare  Mark 
1.  41;  7.  34;  John  5.  8),  a  command;  the  prophet  does 
not  predict  it;  he  orders  it. 


140 OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

12.  Abana,  the  modern  Nahr  Barada,  a  considerable 
stream  flowing  in  many  channels  through  Damascus. 
The  PharpaTy  probably  the  name  now  represented 
by  wady  Barbar;  it  is  to-day  very  insignificant,  but 
perhaps  formerly  was  connected  with  a  larger  stream 
now  called  Nahr  el-A'waj. 

15.  Now  that  he  is  clean  he  comes  before  the  prophet, 
and  stood  in  his  presence,  as  a  servant  does  before  a 
superior.     He  is  humbled,  as  well  as  full  of  gratitude. 

17.  two  mules'  burden  of  earth.  The  thought  is  that 
no  God  could  be  worshiped  elsewhere  than  upon  his 
own  soil.  There  are  echoes  of  this  idea  in  many  other 
ancient  places. 

18.  Rimmon.  This  is  the  god  named  Hadad  in  the 
west,  and  Ramman  or  Adad,  in  the  Assyrian  pantheon. 
His  name  is  more  or  less  familiar  to  us  in  the  biblical 
form  Ben-hadad  (son  of  Hadad)  as  the  name  of  kings 
of  Damascus. 

pardon  thy  servant.  Naaman  desired  to  continue 
to  worship  his  own  national  God  Rimmon,  and  at  the 
same  time  to  honor  Jehovah  whose  prophet  had  shown 
him  the  way  to  healing.  When  Elisha  answered  "Go 
in  peace"  he  gave  tacit  permission.  The  great  prophets 
who  were  later  to  appear  in  Israel  would  have  given 
no  such  consent.  But  Elisha  must  not  be  expected 
to  take  the  position  that  Jeremiah  was  later  to  take. 
The  time  was  not  yet. 


SEVENTEENTH  SUNDAY  AFTER  TRINITY  141 


XLIX 

i^etienteentt)  ^unbap  ^fter  ^ttnttp 

2  Kings  6.  8-23 

Again  are  we  indebted  to  the  unknown  writer  of  Elisha's 
biography  for  this  most  interesting  story,  one  at  least  of 
whose  phrases  has  come  to  have  an  almost  magical  sound 
in  the  ears  of  the  spiritually  minded — "Lord,  I  pray  thee, 
open  his  eyes  that  he  may  see,  .  .  .  and  behold  the  moun- 
tain was  full  of  horses  and  chariots  of  fire." 

6.  8.  shall  be  my  camp.  The  meaning  is  correctly  hit  by 
the  Vulgate.   It  means  "there  we  shall  set  an  ambush." 

10.  sent  to  the  place;  that  is,  reconnoitered  to  see 
whether  the  intelligence  was  correct  that  there  the 
Aramaeans  had  set  an  ambush. 

11.  which  one  of  us  is  for,  naturally  suspecting  that 
there  was  a  traitor  in  his  own  camp. 

12.  in  thy  bedchamber.  A  proverbial  expression  for 
a  secret  place.     (Eccl.  10.  20)  (Barnes). 

13.  Dothan,  now  Tell  Dothdriy  on  the  main  caravan 
road  from  Damascus  to  Egypt,  and  about  ten  miles 
north  of  Samaria. 

17.  horses  and  chariots  of  fire.  Compare  2  Kings 
2.  11,  where  is  the  story  of  Elijah's  ascension.  Jehovah 
has  armies  composed  of  the  same  pure  fiery  element 
in  which  he  dwells,  and  the  religious  imagination  has 
conceived  all  these  hosts  as  invisible  to  mortal  sight. 

21.  the  king  of  Israel.  We  do  not  know  which  king 
this  was. 

22.  set  bread  and  water.  This  is  not  to  be  understood 
literally.     It  may  just  as  well  mean  an  elaborate  feast. 

23.  came  no  more.  The  kind  treatment  produced  a 
good  effect,  and  the  raids  ceased. 


142  OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 


(CiSJlteentS  ^unUap  lifter  tKrinitp 

2  Kings  22.  3-20 
[Alternative  p.  195.] 

The  narrative,  which  describes  the  most  important  dis- 
covery of  the  book  of  Deuteronomy  (or  perhaps  the  kernel 
of  the  book  12-26),  is  of  quite  uncertain  origin.  It  may 
have  come  into  the  book  of  Kings  from  the  Temple  archives, 
or  quite  as  well  from  the  book  of  the  Chronicles  of  the  kings 
of  Judah. 
22.  3.  eighteenth  year,  that  is,  B.  C.  621. 

Shaphan,  a  man  whose  descendants  were  famous 
in  later  history.  His  son  Ahikam  saved  Jeremiah's 
life  (Jer.  26.  24)  and  another  son,  Gemariah,  tried  to 
save  Jeremiah's  roll  of  prophecies  (Jer.  26.  12,  25), 
and  his  grandson  Gedaliah  became  ruler  in  Judah 
after  the  deportation  by  Nebuchadrezzar  (2  Kings 
25.  22;  Jer.  40.  5—41.  10). 

4.  Hilkiah.  The  name  is  the  same  as  Jeremiah's 
father's  name,  but  there  is  no  reason  for  identifying 
the  persons. 

sum.  The  meaning  is  doubtful,  but  one  of  the 
recensions  of  the  Septuagint  (the  Lucian)  translates 
"pour  out,"  and  this  would  agree  with  verse  9. 
8.  the  book  of  the  law.  This  could  not  have  been 
the  whole  Pentateuch,  for  it  was  read  through  twice 
in  one  day  (2  Kings  22.  8,  10).  It  was  the  book  of 
Deuteronomy  in  some  form,  perhaps  chapters  12-26. 
The  name  Book  of  the  Covenant  peculiarly  fits  it, 
and  the  reforms  inaugurated  by  Josiah  are  precisely 
those  commanded  in  Deuteronomy. 


EIGHTEENTH  SUNDAY  AFTER  TRINITY    143 


12.  king's  servant.  Certainly  an  ancient  title  of 
office,  the  meaning  of  which  is  not  known  to  us. 

13.  great  is  the  wrath.  See  Deut.  28  and  29.  The 
part  which  most  powerfully  affected  the  king  was 
quite  likely  chapter  28,  beginniug  with  verse  15. 

14.  Huldah.  Nothing  is  known  of  her  beyond  what 
appears  here  and  in  Chronicles.  The  king  was  at 
his  wit's  end  as  the  book  was  read  to  him,  and  was 
doubtless  filled  with  fear  lest  the  curses  of  the  book 
should  fall  at  once  on  him  and  his  kingdom.  He 
therefore  desired  prophetic  counsel  and  sent  to 
Huldah  for  it.  Jeremiah  had  been  called  to  be  a 
prophet  five  years  before  this  (Jer.  1.  2)  and  it  would 
have  been  very  interesting  had  the  king  consulted 
him.  Why  did  he  not?  Perhaps,  as  Jeremiah  shrank 
from  the  exercise  of  the  office,  he  was  not  yet  well 
known.     (Jer.  1.  6.) 


144  OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 


LI 

^ineteentji  ^mhap  iSfter  Kxinitp 

Jeremiah  5.  1-6,  15-29 

The  lesson  belongs  in  Jeremiah's  acquaintance  with 
Jerusalem,  but  the  efforts  to  locate  it  more  narrowly  seem 
fanciful.  It  was  only  a  very  short  distance  from  his  birth- 
place, Anathoth,  to  Jerusalem  and  there  is  no  solid  basis 
for  the  supposition  that  he  could  not  know  Jerusalem  there 
almost,  or  quite,  as  well  as  in  the  city  itself.  But  Jerusa- 
lem was  his  city.  He  loved  it,  and  he  judged  well  its  faults 
as  well  as  loved  its  virtues.  In  this  passage  we  have  a 
fine  example  of  his  urgent  emphasis  on  righteousness  as 
God's  demand. 

I.  pardon  her.  The  terms  are  easier  than  those  required 
of  Sodom  (Gen.  18.  32). 

3.  hast  stricken.  We  do  not  know  to  what  disaster 
reference  is  here  made. 

4,  5.  The  common  people  have  failed  the  prophet,  and 
he  thinks  that  perhaps  the  men  of  rank  may  do  better, 
but  he  turns  in  vain  to  them. 

15.  Jehovah's  method  of  punishing  his  people  is  to  bring 
against  them  a  foreign  foe.  When  the  prophet  first  spoke 
these  words,  early  in  his  ministry,  the  foe  thought  of  would 
naturally  be  the  Scythians.  When  he  dictated  the  mes- 
sage to  Baruch  he  would  be  thinking  of  the  Babylonians 
as  the  agents  of  God's  wrath. 

18.  The  verse  is  probably  a  later  addition.  It  mitigates 
the  sentence  and  diminishes  the  force  of  the  passage. 

19.  Here  the  allusion  is  to  the  coming  Babylonian  Exile, 
and  we  may  surmise  that  the  form  of  the  utterance  belongs 
rather  to  the  dictation  to  Baruch  than  to  the  days  of  the 
original  sermon. 


NINETEENTH  SUNDAY  AFTER  TRINITY    145 

22.  waters  thereof.  The  expression  is  not  in  the  Hebrew 
text,  but  has  probably  accidentally  dropped  out.  (Com- 
pare 46.  7,  8 — so  Driver.) 

23.  The  people  are  like  the  sea  ever  restless,  and  so  easily 
moved  to  rebellion. 

24.  appointed  weeks;  that  is,  the  seven  weeks  between 
the  Feast  of  the  Passover  and  the  Feast  of  Weeks — this 
was  the  harvest  time. 

28.  This  is  a  very  diflBcult  verse,  and  the  text  is  probably 
in  disorder.  No  satisfactory  emendations  have  yet  been 
proposed,  and  I  follow  the  R.  V. 


146  OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 


LII 

Jeremiah  7.  1-15  and  26.  7-16 

In  this  lesson  there  are  present  two  passages,  the  first 
containing  a  portion  of  one  of  Jeremiah's  most  vivid  and 
most  intense  sermons,  and  the  second  an  account  of  the 
effect  which  it  produced  upon  the  people  who  heard  it. 
The  event  took  place  (26.  1)  "in  the  beginning  of  the  reign 
of  Jehoiakim  the  son  of  Josiah,  king  of  Judah,"  that  is, 
about  the  year  B.  C.  608.  It  should  be  remembered  that 
in  Isaiah's  day  (B.  C.  701)  Jerusalem  had  been  delivered 
from  Sennacherib,  and  it  would  be  a  very  natural  inference 
that  God  had  saved  the  city  because  his  Temple  was  in  it. 
If  he  had  saved  it  then,  would  he  not  save  it  now  in  the 
days  when  the  Babylonians  were  likely  to  threaten  it? — 
so  people  might  well  argue.  Jeremiah  could  believe  no 
such  doctrine  as  that,  for  it  would  make  a  fetish  of  the 
Temple.  It  is  easy  to  see  how  his  denunciation  of  such 
an  idea  would  infuriate  the  people.  It  would  be  easier  to 
rely  on  the  Temple's  protection  than  to  amend  the  ways 
and  doings  of  the  people. 

7.  I.  in  the  gate.     In  26.  2  the  statement  is  the  "court." 

The  place  may  well  have  been  near  the  gate  between 

the  inner  and  the  outer  court,  the  latter  being  crowded 

with  people  from  the  country  round  about. 

5,  6.  Only  when  men  should  really  amend  their  lives 

would  God  save  them. 

9.  bum  incense.    It  should  probably  be  translated 

"burn  sacrifices." 

II.  den   of   robbers.    These   sinful   people   use   the 

Temple  as  a  place  of  escape  from  danger,  just  as 

robbers  seek  a  cave  to  escape  justice. 


TWENTIETH  SUNDAY  AFTER  TRINITY     147 

12.  Shiloh.  Evidently,  some  terrible  catastrophe  had 
at  some  time  fallen  upon  Shiloh,  but  there  is  no 
record  of  it  in  Scripture. 

15.  out  of  my  sight.  Out  of  Jehovah's  land,  which  is 
peculiarly  under  his  oversight. 

26.  7-9.  When  they  had  heard  the  prophet  deliver  the 
whole  message,  and  his  speaking  had  ceased,  a  rising 
tide  of  fury  came  on  the  people  and  they  seized  him, 
and  threatened  him  with  death. 

10.  princes  of  Judah.  Members  of  the  royal  house 
and  ruling  officials.  They  had  level  heads  and  were 
ready  to  take  the  seat  of  justice  and  see  that  the 
mob  committed  no  crime. 

11.  as  ye  have  heard  with  your  ears.  This  was  the 
declaration  made  by  the  complainants.  The  princes 
had  not  heard  these  things, — the  reference  is  to  the 
people  who  had  listened  to  the  prophet. 

12-15.  This  is  Jeremiah's  simple  and  manly  defense. 
It  is  that  he  had  spoken  as  God  had  given  him  to 
speak  and  as  his  duty  was.  He  concedes  their  right 
lawfully  to  put  him  to  death,  but  contends  that  he 
was  innocent  of  wrong  doing. 

16.  The  mob  would  have  killed  Jeremiah,  but  these 
men  recognized  the  prophet's  authority  to  speak  in 
God's  name,  and  having  heard  his  simple  and  dignified 
defense  acquitted  him.  He  had  had  a  narrow  escape, 
and  his  later  ministry  must  be  far  more  cautious. 


148  OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 


Lin 

Daniel  5 
[Alternative  p.  198.] 

The  book  of  Daniel  belongs  not  in  the  number  of  prophetic 
books,  but  is  an  apocalypse  {disclosure^  revelation)  whose 
New  Testament  parallel  or  related  book  is  the  book  of 
Revelation.  Daniel  was  probably  written  between  B.  C. 
168  and  165,  and  perhaps  in  the  year  166.  There  seems 
no  sufficient  reason  to  doubt  that  the  historical  portions 
of  the  book  rest  upon  a  traditional  basis,  and  that  Daniel 
was  a  historical  person.  The  value  of  the  book  religiously 
needs  no  defense.  It  was  a  book  on  which  the  Lord  himself 
laid  friendly  emphasis  and  to  which  he  gave  honor.  What 
was  valuable  to  him  cannot  prove  useless  to  his  followers. 
There  is  no  need,  and  certainly  no  profit,  in  attempting  to 
prove  an  early  date  for  the  book,  or  to  show  its  accord 
with  the  latest  historical  or  archaeological  discoveries. 

5.  I.  Belshazzar.  The  name  in  Babylonian  was  Bel- 
shar-u8ury  "Bel  protect  the  king,"  and  he  was  the  son 
of  Nabonidus,  king  of  Babylon,  B.  C.  555-538.  There 
is  no  evidence  that  he  ever  reigned  as  king. 
2.  his  father.  The  father  of  Belshazzar  was,  as  just 
noted,  Nabonidus, — as  he  was  a  usurper  and  not  of 
the  old  line  of  kings,  Belshazzar  could  not  have  been 
related  to  Nebuchadrezzar.  There  is,  however,  no 
great  difficulty  in  the  idea  of  connecting  him  thus 
with  the  great  king.  Fanciful  genealogies  were  in- 
vented for  the  Assyrian  kings,  and  may  well  have  been 
for  Nabonidus  and  Belshazzar,  though  none  has  yet 
been  found. 


TWENTY-FIRST  SUNDAY  AFTER  TRINITY  149 

5.  plaster.  The  Hebrew  means,  lit.,  "chalk,"  and  the 
wall  was  therefore  white. 

6.  countenance.  Lit.,  brightness;  that  is,  color.  He 
grew  pale. 

7.  Chaldeans.  The  word  originally  meant  a  people, 
a  race.  Here,  as  always  in  this  book,  the  word  means, 
as  in  the  classical  writers,  the  wise  men,  or  learned 
men  who  knew  the  incantations  or  enchantments, 
and  this  use  of  the  word  is  one  of  the  clear  evidences 
of  the  late  date  of  the  book. 

rule  as  one  of  three.  So  R.  V.,  margin,  and  prob- 
ably correctly,  though  the  Hebrew  is  difficult  and 
none  too  plain. 

10.  queen.  Certainly  not  the  wife  of  Nabonidus,  for 
she  had  died,  in  the  ninth  year  of  his  reign.  The 
writer  must  have  meant  the  queen-mother.  But  the 
mother  of  Nabonidus  had  died  eight  years  before,  and 
the  writer  here  must  be  thinking  of  the  wife  of  Nebu- 
chadrezzar. 

25.  Mene,  Mene,  tekel,  upharsin.  The  pronunciation 
should  be  with  the  accent  on  the  final  syllable  in  each 
word,  and  Mene  to  rime  with  "betray,"  and  Tekel 
with  "bewail,"  and  Upharsin  with  "between."  The 
words  are  really  the  Aramaic  words  for  weights,  and 
if  interpreted  literally  would  mean  "a  mina,  a  mina» 
a  shekel,  and  half  shekels."  There  must  have  been 
some  puzzle  in  the  method  of  writing,  and  numerous 
suggestions  have  been  offered  to  explain  it.  It  may 
have  been  intended  to  represent  the  words  as  written 
in  cuneiform  character,  which  if  ideographic  would  be 
difficult  to  read,  and  still  more  to  interpret,  as  each 
sign  might  have  more  than  one  value.  The  thing 
has  thus,  or  in  some  other  way,  become  a  riddle,  and 
DanieKs  skill  at  riddles  (verse  12)  becomes  valuable. 
He  first  reads  the  words,  and  then  interprets  the  sig- 


150 OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

nification  which  they  were  intended  to  have  in  this 
particular  case.  As  Mene  may  be  intended  to  mean 
"numbered"  as  well  as  the  name  of  a  piece  of  money 
— a  mina — it  is  interpreted  as  "numbered,"  and  as 
then  to  be  applied  to  Belshazzar*s  kingdom.  TeheU 
that  is,  "shekel,"  ^'weighed'"  is  similarly  applied,  and 
then  Parsiuy  the  plural  of  peres — a  half  shekel — reminds 
one  of  peris,  which  means  "divided,"  and  paras, 
which  means  in  Aramaic  "Persians." 
31.  Darius  the  Mede.  No  king  of  this  style  is  known 
as  participating  in  the  conquest  of  Babylon  by  Cyrus, 
nor  is  anything  known  of  the  source  of  the  "three 
score  and  two  years  old." 

The  historical  difficulties  in  this  case,  as  in  verse  10 
concerning  the  queen,  are  among  the  numerous  evi- 
dences in  favor  of  the  late  date  of  the  book  as  a  whole. 
It  must,  however,  be  remembered  that  the  value  of 
the  book  does  not  depend  upon  its  historical  con- 
sistency. Its  value  is  not  historical,  but  religious,  and 
its  religious  value  is  in  no  wise  impaired  by  the  his- 
torical inconsistencies.  It  served  its  purpose  when 
first  written,  and  still  does. 


TWENTY-SECOND  SUNDAY  AFTER  TRINITY  151 


LIV 

Proverbs  3.  1-20 
[Alternative  p.  200.] 

The  book  of  Proverbs  belongs  to  the  Wisdom  Literature 
of  the  Old  Testament,  which  is  represented  also  in  Eccle- 
siastes  and  Job.     That  it  is  composite  in  character  is  dis- 
tinctly stated  in  the  book  itself,  which  is  divided  into  a 
number  of  parts  indicating  smaller  collections  of  Wisdom 
Literature  which  were  joined  to  make  the  larger  book. 
The   proverbial   literature   is   in   origin   ascribed   to   King 
Solomon  and  additions  to  it  were  made  through  the  cen- 
turies.    The  book  is  rich  in  garnered  practical  wisdom  and 
is  far  too  little  read  in  public. 
3.  3.  kindness    and   faithfulness.    R.    V.,    "mercy   and 
truth.'*     It  is  not,  however,  mercy  (compassion)  and 
truth,  for  which  there  are  other  expressions  in  Hebrew, 
faithfulness   is   steadfastness — the   standing   by   one's 
word  or  promise. 

bind  . . .  write.  The  figure  seems  probably  to  have 
been  taken  from  Deut.  6.  8,  which  led  to  the  making 
of  phylacteries. 

8.  body.  R.  V.,  "navel."  The  change  of  a  Hebrew 
letter  gives  the  far  more  probable  as  well  as  desirable 
reading,  "body." 

refreshment.  R.  V.,  "marrow."  The  verse  is  to  be 
understood  quite  literally.  The  wise  man  declares  that 
a  life  of  dependence  upon  Jehovah,  dedicated  to 
righteousness,  is  profitable  in  its  effect  upon  the  body. 
Health  comes  from  it,  freedom  from  ills  and  the  ease 
of  mind  that  results  from  bodily  well  being. 


152 OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

9.  firstfruits.  An  allusion  to  the  precepts  of  the  Law 
(Deut.  18.  4,  26.  2). 

ID.  bams.  Compare  Deut.  28.  8  and  Mai.  3.  10-12. 
II,  12.  Suppose  one  who  had  read  9,  10  should  say, 
"Oh,  but  I  know  cases  in  which  men  did  really  fulfill 
all  the  law's  demands,  and  yet  were  sufferers."  To 
such  these  verses  make  reply.  The  suffering  of  the 
righteous  is  an  important  problem  in  the  Wisdom 
Literature.     See  Job  5.  17,  18. 

15.  coral.  R.  V.,  "rubies."  There  is  a  pretty  dis- 
pute as  to  which  is  meant,  but  the  probabilities  lie 
strongly  on  the  side  of  coral,  which  was  highly  es- 
teemed in  the  ancient  world. 

18.  tree  of  life.  The  figure  is  derived  from  Gen.  2.  9 
and  appears  again  in  Prov.  11.  30,  13.  12,  15.  4. 
20.  depths,  that  is,  the  subterranean  masses  of  water 
from  which  springs  were  believed  to  issue.  In  the 
same  way  dew  came  out  of  the  firmament,  which  held 
above  it  bodies  of  water,  which  issued  through  cannels 
as  rain  or  dew.  The  thought  in  the  wise  man*s  mind 
is  that  none  of  these  things  happen  by  chance,  but 
all  are  directed  by  the  Creator,  who  made  them  in 
the  first  instance. 


TWENTY-THIRD  SUNDAY  AFTER  TRINITY  153 


LV 

Proverbs  8.  1-21 

For  general  observations   upon  the  book  of  Proverbs 

see  the  previous  lesson.     This  lesson,  like  that,  belongs  to 

the  introduction  to  the  Book. 

8.  2.  At  the  head  of  thoroughfares.    So  the  Hebrew  seems 

to  mean.     It  is  surely  not,  "In  the  top  of  high  places,'* 

as  the  R.  V.  translates. 

In  the  streets.    R.  V.,  "where  the  paths  meet." 

3.  At  the  entrance  of  the  gates.  R.  V.,  "the  coming  in 
of  the  doors,"  but  the  city  gates  are  meant. 

4.  prudence.  R.  V.,  subtilty,  but  margin  "prudence," 
which  is  better. 

11.  coral.  R.  V.,  "rubies,"  but  it  is  much  more  likely 
that  coral  is  meant,  which  was  highly  esteemed  among 
the  ancients. 

12.  possess  intelligence.  R.  V.,  "have  made  subtilty 
my  dwelling" — a  very  slight  change  in  text  gives  a 
much  preferable  reading  (so  Toy,  Currie). 

13.  This  verse  rather  breaks  the  connection  between 
12  and  14,  and  it  is  quite  doubtful  whether  it  really 
belongs  here.  I  have,  however,  not  been  able  to 
persuade  myself  to  omit  it  from  the  lesson. 

15.  By  me  kings  reign.    Compare  1  Kings  3.  5-12. 

16.  The  second  member  of  this  verse  has  given  inter- 
preters much  trouble,  and  there  seems  no  way  to  mend 
it  but  boldly  to  follow  the  Septuagint  and  this  I  have 
done.  All  the  English  versions  stand  by  the  Hebrew 
Text. 

18.  durable.    The  Hebrew  word  is  hard  to  translate. 


154 OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

The  R.  V.  margin  is  "ancient,"  that  is,  "inherited 
from  ancestors."  The  Septuagint  makes  it  "abun- 
dant," and  the  Latin  Vulgate  "superb."  The  Amer- 
ican Jewish  version  has  "enduring,"  which  lies  close 
to  the  "durable"  of  the  R.  V.  It  is  the  riches  which 
cannot  be  taken  away,  the  "true  riches"  (Luke  16.  11), 
the  riches  inseparable  from  us  and  as  immortal  as 
our  souls. 

20.  justice.    R.  v.,  "judgment." 

21.  wealth.  R.  V.,  "substance,"  and  so  also  the 
Jewish  version. 


TWENTY-FOURTH  SUNDAY  AFTER  TRINITY  155 


LVI 

CfcDentp«tourtt)  ^unbap  iSfter  Zxinitp 

Proverbs  31.  10-31 
[Alternative  p.  202.] 

In  the  book  of  Proverbs  there  is  inserted  a  small  frag- 
ment (31.  2-9)  which  has  for  its  superscription  the  follow- 
ing, as  it  should  be  translated:  "The  words  of  Lemuel, 
king  of  Massa,  which  his  mother  taught  him."  Massa  is 
the  name  of  an  Ishmaelite  tribe  (Gen.  25.  14),  and  as  this 
passage  is  ascribed  to  his  mother,  the  compiler  of  the  book 
of  Proverbs  has  added  immediately  thereafter  a  poem  on 
a  good  woman.  The  ideal  represented  is  that  of  a  house- 
wife and  woman  of  business,  and  no  traits  either  intel- 
lectual or  religious  are  represented  in  it,  but  it  has  a  certain 
beauty  of  its  own,  and  deserves  to  be  read  at  least  as  an 
occasional  lesson.  An  alternative  is  supplied  to  take  its 
place  when  desired. 

31.  10.  good,  so  rather  than  "virtuous"  (R.  V.).  The 
question  is  not  ironical.  It  is  not  intended  to  hint 
that  none  may  be  found,  but  only  that  she  must  be 
sought. 

15.  a  portion.  R.  V.  reads  "their  task,"  but  has  the 
correct  translation  in  the  margin.  The  "portion" 
means  their  share  of  the  food  of  the  household. 

16.  fruit  of  her  hands,  that  is,  her  earnings.  She  is 
a  business  woman. 

18.  her  lamp  goeth  not  out.  It  is  still  a  custom 
among  the  Arabs  to  have  a  lamp  burn  all  night, 
and  to  sleep  in  darkness  is  considered  a  sign  of  great 
poverty.     Compare  Jer.  25.  10  and  Job  18.  6. 


156 OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

19.  distaff  . . .  spindle.     Compare  the  beautiful  lines 
of  Catullus  (quoted  by  Perowne) : 
"The  left  the  distaflf  held,  from  which  the  right. 
Plucking  the  wool  with  upturned  fingers  light. 
Twisted  the  threads,  which  o'er  the  thumb  they  wound. 
Then  swiftly  whirled  the  well-poised  spindle  round." 

(Tr.  by  Sir  Theodore  Martin.) 

21.  scarlet.  The  Hebrew  is  uncertain.  Something 
"warm"  is  required  by  the  context. 

22.  coverings.  So  A.  V.,  which  is  preferable  to  R.  V. 
"carpets,"  margin  "cushions."  There  is  no  justi- 
fication for  the  qualifying  phrase  "of  tapestry." 

24.  merchant.  The  Hebrew  has  "Canaanite."  In 
early  days  the  business  of  the  country  was  in  the 
hands  of  the  Canaanites,  while  the  Hebrews  were 
herdsmen   or   tillers   of   the   soil.    Hence  the   word 

"Canaanite"  came  to  have  the  meaning  of  "merchant." 

25.  laugheth ;  that  is,  has  no  anxiety. 

26.  kindly  instruction;  that  is,  she  instructs  servants 
kindly,  not  harshly. 

30.  a  woman  that  feareth  the  Lord.  The  form  in 
which  this  line  appears  in  the  Septuagint  suggests 
that  originally  the  line  read,  "A  woman  of  intel- 
ligence, she  shall  be  praised,"  but  I  have  not  ven- 
tured to  introduce  it  into  the  text. 

31.  Such  a  wife  is  not  her  husband's  slave.  She 
deserves  to  share  with  him  in  the  fruits  of  her  labors, 
as  of  his,  and  should  be  publicly  praised  for  her 
good  works.  This  part  of  the  verse  is  interesting 
as  showing  that  among  the  Hebrews  of  that  day 
it  was  not  considered  undignified  or  improper  or  in 
bad  taste  to  refer  publicly  to  one's  wife,  as  is  now 
commonly  the  feeling  in  the  East. 


TWENTY-FIFTH  SUNDAY  AFTER  TRINITY  157 


LVII 

Job  5.  6-26 

The  book  of  Job  is  the  consummate  climax  and  the  most 
beautiful  flower  of  the  Wisdom  Literature  of  the  Old  Testa- 
ment.   The  name  of  the  great  poetic  genius  who  wrote 
it  has  perished,  nor  is  ever  likely  to  be  recovered.     The 
book  belongs  to  the  postexilic  period,  perhaps  as  late  as 
the  fifth  century  B.  C.     The  book  was  intended  to  meet 
the  dread  problem  of  pain  and  suffering,  and  by  widening 
the  idea  of  the  Divine  Providence  teach  that  the  older 
theology,  which  made  human  suffering  have  its  only  origin 
in  human  sin,  was  entirely  wrong  and  that  human  suffer- 
ing might  well  be  due  to  a  trial  of  righteousness.     It  affords 
no  complete  theodicy,  but  offers  only  a  higher  and  deeper 
knowledge  of  God  as  man's  best  comfort  in  all  earthly 
trials.     The  lesson  here  used  comes  from  the  first  speech 
of  Eliphaz,  the  mystic.  Job's  friend,  who  bases  his  argu- 
ment upon  a  personal  revelation  from  God.    This  speech 
is  one  of  the  masterpieces  of  the  book.     It  answers  Job's 
wild  cry  for  death  (chap.  3)  and  attempts  to  draw  him  into 
a  deeper  reverence  for  God,  and  absolute  submission  to  him. 
5.  7.  man . . .  bom  unto  trouble,  that  is,  it  is  his  nature 
through  sin  to  bring  trouble  upon  himself. 
8.  There  is  no  help  for  this  condition  but  to  turn  to 
God.     He  doeth  wonderful  things   (verse  9)   and  is 
therefore  capable  of  meeting  man's  trouble. 
13.  in  their  own  craftiness.    Quoted  by  Paul  (1  Cor. 
3.  19),  and  the  only  direct  quotation  from  the  book 
of  Job  in  the  New  Testament.    It  is  curious  and  in- 
teresting to  observe  that  in  this  instance  Paul  did  not 


158  OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 


follow  the  Septuagint  version  and  must  either  have 
made  his  own  translation  direct  from  the  Hebrew,  or 
made  use  of  some  Version  to  us  unknown. 

17.  Job's  frightful  sufferings  should  be  received  with 
joy  as  an  evidence  of  God's  interest  in  him.  This  is 
sound  biblical  doctrine,  taught  in  many  passages. 
See,  for  example,  Psa.  94.  12;  Prov.  3.  11;  Heb.  12.  5. 

18.  If  God  afflicts,  it  is  only  that  he  may  bind  up  and 
so  heal  more  perfectly. 

19.  six  . . .  seven.  Round  numbers,  meaning  many  or 
all. 

20.  In  famine  ...  in  war.  These  were  the  sorest  and 
saddest  afflictions  of  the  ancient  East. 

21.  the  scourge  of  the  tongue,  that  is,  slander  or  cal- 
umny. 

23.  If  Job  will  only  come  into  peace  with  God,  he 
will  by  that  very  fact  find  himself  also  at  peace  with 
inanimate  and  animate  nature. 

25,  26.  Furthermore,  Job  shall  have  numerous  off- 
spring, and  in  the  end  come  peacefully  to  the  grave, 
like  fully  ripened  grain.  From  this  come  Milton's 
fine  lines  (quoted  in  the  Speaker's  Commentary) : 

"So  mayest  thou  live,  till,  like  ripe  fruits,  thou  drop 
Into  thy  mother's  lap;  or  be  with  ease 
Gathered,  not  harshly  plucked;  for  death  mature." 


TWENTY-SIXTH  SUNDAY  AFTER  TRINITY  159 


LVIII 

Job  28 

For  general  notes  upon  the  book  of  Job  see  Lesson  LVII, 
p.  157.  The  present  lesson  comes  from  the  address  of  Job, 
as  the  book  is  at  present  arranged,  but  it  is  extremely 
difficult  to  interpret  in  that  connection,  and  there  are  many 
who  hold  that  the  arrangement  as  made  by  the  author 
was  quite  likely  different.  (See  the  Commentaries.)  But 
for  the  purpose  of  public  reading  this  question  is  not  im- 
portant, and  the  noble  and  beautiful  passage  may  yield 
its  poetic  instruction  as  it  stands,  regardless  of  the  question 
to  whom  the  author  originally  assigned  it.  The  thought 
of  this  chapter  is  that  man  can  never  hope  to  reach  wisdom. 
It  belongs  to  God,  and  of  him  must  be  sought,  whatever 
may  be  suitable  for  man  to  possess  in  its  place. 

28.  2.  copper.  R.  V.,  reads  *'brass,"  but  incorrectly; 
brass  is  an  alloy,  not  a  native  metal. 

3.  thick  darkness,  that  is,  the  darkest  recesses  of 
earth  to  which  miners  penetrate. 

4.  forgotten  of  the  foot.  Men  walk  above  ground, 
not  knowing  that  beneath  their  feet  the  miner  works. 

5.  Upon  the  earth*s  surface  the  farmer  grows  his 
grain,  which  is  ground  and  baked  into  bread,  while 
beneath  the  earth  is  torn  and  broken,  and  blasted  by 
the  miner  seeking  its  treasures. 

6.  sapphires.  The  stone  meant  is  probably  the  beau- 
tiful lapis  lazuli,  which  is  frequently  veined  with  iron 
pyrites  looking  like  a  sprinkling  of  gold  dust. 

7.  that  path,  namely,  the  long,  dark  channel  which 
the  miner  has  cut.    No  bird  enters  it. 


160 OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

II.  streams  . . .  trickle  not.     The  allusion  is  to  the 

water  that  filters  through  clefts  in  the  rocks  into  the 

miners'  shafts  and  must  be  stopped  up. 

12-14.  Man  has  learned  how  to  find  his  way  to  precious 

metals  and  rich  jewels,  but  he  cannot  thus  find  the 

home  of  wisdom. 

15-19.  And  as  man  cannot  discover  it,  so  also  he 

cannot  purchase  it,  no  matter  what  price  he  might  be 

willing  to  pay. 

17.  glass  was  rare  and  precious  in  ancient  times. 

20-22.  The  thought  of  15-19  is  continued.     Wisdom 

cannot  be  found  in  this  world,  nor  in  the  world  beyond. 

22.  Destruction  and  Death.  Hebrew,  Abaddon,  that 
is,  Sheol  and  Death  both  personified. 

23.  way . . .  place.  These  are  only  parts  of  the 
figure.  Wisdom  is  really  with  God,  and  with  him 
alone. 

25.  weight  for  the  wind,  that  is,  God  weighed  out  the 
amount  of  the  wind,  determined  its  quantity. 

27.  count.    R.  v.,  "declare,"  margin,  "recount." 

28.  Wisdom,  then,  belongs  exclusively  to  God.  For 
man  the  only  obtainable  gift  is  the  fear  of  God, 
which  is  man's  substitute  for  the  Divine  Wisdom. 


SUNDAY  NEXT  BEFORE  ADVENT  161 


LIX 
^unbap  £ext  J&ttott  ^bbent 

EccLEsiASTEs  11.  1-4,  6-10;  12.  8,  13,  14 

The  book  of  Ecclesiastes  has  puzzled  many  commentators 
and  has  suffered  much  at  their  hands.  The  difficulty  which 
has  caused  most  of  the  trouble  has  been  a  widespread  desire 
to  make  the  book  conform  to  modern  Western  standards 
of  logical  consistency.  To  accomplish  this  the  book  has 
been  subjected  to  severe  editorial  curtailment,  to  remove 
inconsistencies.  It  is  much  more  likely  that  the  book 
represents  changing  moods,  and  that  its  author  was  never 
consistent  with  himself  or  his  thinking.  There  are  pas- 
sages of  great  beauty  and  of  undying  interest  in  it.  It 
was  written  in  the  name  of  King  Solomon,  a  form  of  literary 
artifice  well  known  in  antiquity,  and  probably  by  a  Jew 
in  the  late  Persian  or  early  Greek  period. 

II.  I.  Cast  thy  bread.  Interpreted  in  three  different 
ways:  (a)  of  almsgiving  and  generosity,  (b)  of  a  busi- 
ness venture,  and  (c)  of  agriculture.  The  first  is  much 
to  be  preferred. 

3,  4.  The  thought  is  that  one  must  go  on  with  his 
work  and  not  heed  the  operations  of  nature  which 
one  cannot  change.  This  idea  is  again  enforced 
in  verse  6. 

7,  8.  It  is  man*s  wisdom  to  enjoy  his  life  as  it  flows 
along,  take  pleasure  in  so  simple  a  thing  as  sunlight, 
for  he  has  no  right  to  expect  that  he  will  always 
have  the  power  of  enjoyment,  or  the  things  to  enjoy. 
The  idea  is  Carpe  diem  (Horace);  that  is,  "Reap  the 
harvest  of  to-day." 
9.  The  young  man  is  advised  to  make  glad  use  of 


162  OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

youth,  but  to  remember  that  God  requires  an  ac- 
counting for  the  use  made  of  it. 
12.  I.  Remember  also  now  thy  Creator.  The  words  are 
commonly  held  among  modem  commentators  to  be 
an  insertion  of  a  later  hand.  If  they  are,  let  us 
accept  and  use  them  as  the  advice  of  another  wise 
man. 

2.  7.  These  verses  have  been  variously  interpreted 
as  either  (a)  a  reference  to  various  forms  and  func- 
tions of  the  body,  or  (b)  a  description  of  a  great 
storm,  itself  a  figure  of  the  darkness  and  gloom  of 
age.  It  is  idle  and  unsympathetic  as  well  to  press 
them  closely  into  any  mold  of  western  thought. 
We  are  here  dealing  not  with  western  logic,  but  with 
eastern  imagination,  and  should  try  to  remember 
that  mixed  metaphors,  or  changing  phases  of  a  single 
metaphor,  are  at  home  in  the  Oriental  lands  of  bright 
sunlight  and  deep  shadows. 

2.  clouds  return.  The  winter,  when  one  storm  fol- 
lows quickly  on  the  heels  of  another. 

3.  keepers  of  the  house.  Some  say  the  keepers  of  the 
house  are  the  hands,  and  the  strong  men  are  the  feet, 
while  others  would  make  the  allusion  to  a  decaying 
house. 

grinders.    Quite  likely  the  teeth. 

look  out  of  the  windows.     Probably  the  "eyes." 

4.  doors  shall  be  shut.  The  figure  seems  to  be  that 
of  a  once  prosperous  house,  but  now  with  doors 
closed  and  offering  no  hospitality. 

daughters  of  music  . . .  low.    Sounds  of  music  are 
no  longer  well  heard  in  dull  ears. 

5.  that  which  is  high.    The  aged  cannot  climb  hills, 
almond  tree.    The  almond  flowers  white,  and  the 

allusion  may  possibly  be  to  the  white  hair  of  the  aged, 
but  it  is  very  doubtful. 


SUNDAY  NEXT  BEFORE  ADVENT  163 

grasshopper  . . .  burden,  (a)  Even  the  weight  of  a 
grasshopper  would  be  a  burden,  which  is  hyperbole, 
or  (b)  the  aged  walks  bent  and  slow  like  the  locust. 

caper-berry.     Used  for  some  medicinal  purpose. 
6.  The  verse  is  evidently  a  highly  poetical  descrip- 
tion of  the  end  of  life,  but  it  does  not  seem  wise  to 
attempt  to  force  an  interpretation  upon  every  single 
item  in  the  figure. 
8.  Vanity  of  vanities.     Compare 

"His  breath's  a  bubble,  and  his  days  a  span — 
'Tis  glorious  misery  to  be  born  a  man" 

(Francis  Quarles). 
13, 14.  This  conclusion  of  the  whole  matter  is  by  many, 
if  not  most,  modern  scholars  ascribed  to  another 
hand  than  that  of  the  original  author.  It  matters 
not  who  wrote  it,  so  far  as  public  reading  is  con- 
cerned. The  editors  of  the  Hebrew  text  thought  the 
last  sentence  harsh,  and  so  they  repeated  verse  13 
after  verse  14  to  give  a  conclusion  more  mild. 


ALTERNATIVE  LESSONS 


FIRST  SUNDAY  IN  ADVENT  167 


ALTERNATIVE  I 

Jfirflit  ^unbap  in  i^bbent 

Isaiah  1.  1-20 

The  date  of  the  passage  is  quite  uncertain.  It  may  be 
as  early  as  B.  C.  735  or  as  late  as  701,  to  which  later  date 
I  am  the  more  inclined,  though  with  no  feeling  of  any 
definite  assurance.  For  this  present  purpose  it  matters 
little.  Here  are  the  chief  outlines  of  Isaiah's  whole  teach- 
ing, a  summary  of  his  message. 

2.  the  Lord  hath  spoken.  Isaiah  has  heard  him  speak 
since  he  was  called  to  be  a  prophet  (see  Lesson  XXXII), 
and  he  will  now  give  forth  the  divine  message. 

4.  Holy  One.  It  was  the  divine  holiness  which  was 
impressed  upon  the  prophet  in  the  inaugural  vision  (Isa.  6), 
and  he  keeps  it  ever  before  him. 

6.  The  allusion  is  to  the  simple  surgery  of  the  day.  A 
wound  was  first  pressed  to  exclude  any  pus,  then  drawn 
together,  bandaged  and  mollified  with  oil  (see  Luke  10.  34). 

7.  The  situation  here  described,  while  not  necessarily 
ill  suited  to  the  condition  which  may  or  did  occur  during 
the  invasion  of  the  Syro-Ephraimistic  army  in  735,  seems 
much  better  suited  to  the  greater  devastation  caused  by 
Sennacherib  in  701. 

8.  daughter  of  Zion.    Jerusalem  and  her  people. 

a  booth ...  a  lodge.  Frail  structures  set  upon  light 
poles  and  used  by  the  watchers  who  sat  in  them  to  protect 
crops  against  thieves  or  wild  animals. 

10-17.  "The  false  and  the  true  way  of  seeking  God's 
favor"  (Dillmann). 

II.  full  of,  sated  with.  In  the  beginning  sacrifices  were 
conceived  as  the  food  of  the  gods,  and  here  is  seen  to  be 
lingering  faintly  even  in  the  far  higher  religion  of  Israel. 


168  OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 


12.  trample.  The  word  is  strong,  and  implies,  without 
quite  expressing,  the  idea  of  their  desecrating  the  holy- 
precincts. 

15.  spread  forth  your  hands,  namely,  in  the  attitude  of 
prayer. 

18-20.  Jehovah  is  willing  to  plead  his  cause,  for  great  is 
his  condescension. 

18.  let  us  reason  together.  A  very  difficult  phrase  in 
the  Hebrew  and  the  translation  is  still  subject  of  dispute 
and  the  exegesis  still  more.  Perhaps  we  shall  come  nearest 
the  heart  of  it  if  we  venture  to  say  it  means  to  discuss  to- 
gether this  great  subject  and  see  from  the  debate  who  is 
right  and  who  is  wrong.  So,  in  general,  Gray  would  explain 
it,  while  Skinner  would  give  it  rather  a  legal  meaning. 

Though  your  sins.  This  is  imaginary.  The  clause 
has  sometimes  been  interpreted  as  an  interrogative,  though 
with  doubtful  grammatical  propriety.  The  main  point  is 
that  though  God  is  IsraeFs  God  he  is  not  on  that  account 
to  be  thought  lenient  to  Israel's  sins  (compare  Amos, 
3.  2).  Men  must  meet  the  conditions  set  forth  in  verses 
19  and  20. 

scarlet . . .  crimson.  Not  two  colors,  but  one.  The 
second  word  really  means  "worm"  literally,  and  signifies 
the  insect  from  which  the  color  was  obtained  (coccus  ilicis). 
As  Gray  reminds  us  the  first  word  really  means  "scarlet 
clothes,"  so  sin  is  represented  as  a  red  garment  enwrapping 
the  sinner.     Compare  the  figure  in  Zech.  3.  3f. 


SECOND  SUNDAY  IN  ADVENT  169 


ALTERNATIVE  II 
^econb  ^unbap  m  ^bbent 

Isaiah  5.  1-20 

The  Parable  of  the  Vineyard  and  Isaiah's  smashing 
application  of  its  lesson  to  the  sins  of  his  people.  The 
lesson  falls  naturally  into  two  parts:  (a)  the  parable,  verses 
1-7  and  (b)  the  denunciation  and  the  woes,  verses  8-20. 
There  are  no  historical  or  political  allusions  to  help  us  to 
the  period  of  the  prophet's  ministry  to  which  it  belongs. 
Isaiah  appears  among  the  people  in  the  guise  of  a  minstrel, 
perhaps  at  some  festival  when  people  from  the  countryside 
were  in  the  city,  and  speaks  this  parable.  He  puts  it  into 
poetic  form,  with  many  a  turn  and  a  sort  of  light  and  at- 
tractive measure  and  would  soon  have  a  company  very 
willing  to  hear  him;  and  then  when  they  have  heard  him 
gladly,  he  skillfully  turns  the  parable  and  shows  its  bear- 
ing upon  the  nation's  life  in  a  series  of  six  woes  directed 
against  the  higher  classes  and  the  leaders  of  the  com- 
munity. 

2.  built  a  tower.  A  shelter  for  the  watchers;  not  a 
mere  temporary  thing  on  poles,  as  in  Isa.  1.  8,  but  a  solid 
construction  as  an  evidence  of  the  permanent  construction 
of  the  whole  vineyard. 

6.  thorns  and  thistles.    A  favorite  expression  of  Isaiah. 

7.  vineyard  of  the  Lord.  We  do  not  know  whether  it 
was  Isaiah  or  another  who  first  originated  this  conception 
of  a  vineyard  as  an  expression  for  the  true  religion  of  rev- 
elation, but  it  became  very  widely  used.  See,  for  example, 
Jer.  2.  21;  12.  lOf.;  Matt.  20.  Iff.;  21.  33ff. 

Now  come  the  six  woes,  which  were  quite  probably  seven, 
or  even  more  as  originally  delivered. 


170 OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

8-10.  Denunciation  of  rich  landowners,  who  contrive  to 
get  small  holdings  away  from  the  poor  and  so  to  increase 
their  own  estates. 

10.  ten  acres.  Lit.,  ten  yoke;  a  yoke  of  land  was  as 
much  as  two  oxen  could  plow  from  morning  till  night. 

one  bath.     About  eight  gallons,  which  would  be  a 
small  yield  for  so  large  a  vineyard. 

11-13.  Denunciation  of  those  who  carouse  from  morn 
till  night  imbibing  strong  drink,  that  is,  wine  fortified 
alcoholically  by  the  addition  of  dates,  honey,  raisins,  and 
the  like  to  increase  fermentation.  Then  when  stimulated 
they  add  music  and  with  senses  dulled  and  ears  given  up 
to  sensual  sound  forget  Jehovah  and  all  his  ways. 

14-17.  A  threat  of  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem. 

17.  The  city  has  vanished  into  Sheol,  and  in  its  place 
the  cattle  pasture. 

18,  19.  The  verses  contain  an  impious  and  mocking 
challenge  uttered  by  sinful  men  to  Jehovah  to  do  his 
worst.  They  do  not  doubt  his  existence.  They  doubt 
only  his  moral  government.  They  are  not  afraid  of  the 
prophet's  denunciations. 

20.  Woe  to  those  who  darken,  or  doubt  or  confuse  the 
great  moral  distinctions. 


THIRD  SUNDAY  IN  ADVENT  171 


ALTERNATIVE  III 

Ctitrli  ^unbap  m  ^bbent 

Isaiah  25.  1-9 

The  passage  is  taken  from  a  series  of  brilliant  prophecies 
in  chapters  24-27  which  are,  in  general,  apocalyptic  in  char- 
acter. They  are,  therefore,  to  be  compared  with  the  book 
of  Daniel  in  the  Old  Testament  and  with  the  book  of  Rev- 
elation in  the  New.  They  are  quite  unlike  the  preaching 
of  Isaiah  of  Jerusalem  or  of  Isaiah  of  Babylon,  and  prob- 
ably should  be  dated  in  the  Persian  period,  though  it  is 
well  to  remember  that  the  historical  circumstances  are 
unknown,  and  it  is,  therefore,  not  fitting  for  us  to  be  very 
dogmatic  about  the  time  when  the  passage  was  composed. 
The  lesson  falls  into  two  parts,  (a)  verses  1-5,  a  song  of 
thanksgiving  to  celebrate  the  deliverance  which  Jehovah 
has  given  his  people;  (b)  verses  6-8,  Jehovah's  feast  on 
Mount  Zion  to  all  the  nations.  This  is,  indeed,  a  most 
catholic  passage.  Here  Jehovah  is  no  exclusive  possession 
of  Israel,  but  a  loving  and  very  tender  Lord  over  all  peoples, 
willing  and  glad  to  husband  them  all  as  his  own,  and  to 
take  away  even  the  sad  misery  of  death.  What  other 
people  ever  had  such  an  idea  of  God  as  had  these  Jews 
of  Jehovah?  Is  not  this  wonderful  in  our  eyes,  if  we  can 
conceive  and  understand  it? 

2.  city  an  heap.  The  reference  is  to  some  city  which 
had  represented  hostility  to  Jehovah  but  was  in  the  prophet's 
time  destroyed. 

4,  5.  But  Jehovah  saved  his  own  people  Israel. 

6-8.  Here  is  the  glorious  passage!  Jehovah  is  to  be  the 
crowned  King  of  all  the  earth,  and  this  is  his  coronation 
feast.     He  will  hold  the  festival  on  Mount  Zion,  and  it  is 


m OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

not  for  Israel  only,  but  all  nations  are  bidden  as  his  guests. 
The  nations  come  enveloped  in  mourning  garments,  for 
they  do  not  yet  know  that  all  their  troubles  are  gone  for 
aye;  but  Jehovah  strips  off  the  habiliments  of  woe  and  sees 
the  tears  beneath;  the  last  tears  are  these,  for  even  death 
itself  is  now  destroyed  forever  in  the  ushering  in  of  the 
Messianic  age. 

9.  This  verse  really  introduces  a  new  section  concerning 
Moab,  but  it  may  quite  appropriately  be  used  in  public 
reading  to  conclude  the  splendid  passage  (6-8)  with  a  burst 
of  grateful  praise. 


FOURTH  SUNDAY  IN  ADVENT  173 


ALTERNATIVE  IV 
Jf  ourtd  S^untiap  tn  ^bbent 

Zechariah  2 

The  exiles  returned  from  Babylonia  in  B.  C.  5S6,  but 
in  numbers  far  fewer  than  was  to  be  desired.  A  series  of 
bad  seasons,  the  diflBculty  of  bringing  the  land  under  cultiva- 
tion, troubles  with  their  neighbors,  and  a  general  and  very 
perilous  apathy  prevented  the  immediate  rebuilding  of  the 
Temple,  and  the  whole  religious  future  of  Judaism  was 
imperiled,  for  the  Temple  was  an  essential  factor  in  the 
building  of  an  ecclesiastical  state.  In  this  juncture  two 
prophets,  Haggai  and  Zechariah,  after  sixteen  years  of 
waiting  for  a  national  move,  began  to  incite  the  people  to 
their  duty.  Of  these  two  men  Zechariah  is  incomparably 
the  more  important  from  the  point  of  view  of  literary  ability. 
He  made  a  new  departure  in  the  form  of  prophetic  teaching, 
for  he  put  his  message  into  the  form  of  a  series  of  allegories, 
of  which  Bunyan's  Pilgrim's  Progress  is  a  modem  example. 
This  lesson  is  the  third  vision,  and  was  delivered  February 
24,  519,  the  whole  sermon  being  comprised  in  1.  7 — 6.  15. 
This  is  the  vision  of  the  man  with  the  measuring  line. 

2.  2.  Jerusalem  is  only  partially  rebuilt,  but  in  the 
vision  the  man  with  the  measuring  line  goes  out  to  see  how 
large  the  city  should  be  to  accommodate  the  great  influx 
of  people  whom  the  prophet  expects. 

3.  came  forth.  R.  V.,  "went  out."  An  angel  had  been 
talking  with  the  prophet,  and  as  he  left  him  another 
angel  came  forth  to  join  him. 

4.  and  he  said.  R.  V.,  "and  said."  The  meaning  is 
that  the  interpreting  angel  who  stood  by  the  prophet's 
side  to  explain  the  vision  spoke  to  the  man  with  the 


174  OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

measuring  line  and  bade  him  not  to  define  the  city 
limits. 

villages  without  walls.  Lit.,  as  "open  country 
districts,"  as  opposed  to  walled  cities  (Driver).  The 
idea  is  that  the  city  will  be  enormously  expanded. 

6.  flee  from  the  land  of  the  north.  Addressed  to  the 
people  who  still  are  in  Babylonia. 

I  will  gather  you.  R.  V.,  "I  have  spread  you 
abroad,"  etc.  I  have  unhesitatingly  followed  the 
Septuagint,  which  gives  a  far  more  preferable  sense. 

7.  Zion.  The  part  still  in  Babylonia;  escape,  for  a 
heavy  judgment  of  God  is  about  to  fall  on  the  heathen 
peoples,  and  God's  people  should  not  be  among  them. 

9.  shall  be  a  spoil.  Israel  shall  spoil  them,  as  they 
had  spoiled  her. 

10.  I  will  dwell  in  the  midst  of  thee,  that  is,  when  the 
Temple  has  been  rebuilt. 

11.  many  nations.  These  will  join  themselves  to 
God's  people  to  learn  of  him. 

12.  holy  land.  This  is  the  only  place  in  which  this 
expression  occurs,  yet  it  has  become  very  common  in 
our  speech. 

13.  This  is  God's  judgment  on  the  heathen  world 
(compare  verse  9).  The  people  are  bidden  to  be 
silent  in  awe,  as  they  think  of  the  impending  wrath, 
for  he  is  already  bestirring  himself  in  his  holy  habita- 
tion. 


FIRST  SUNDAY  AFTER  EPIPHANY  175 


ALTERNATIVE  VIII 

Isaiah  51.  1-16 

This  fine  lesson,  eloquent  and  earnest,  was  addressed  to 
the  exiles  in  Babylon,  and  was  intended  as  a  consolation 
and  an  encouragement.  It  divides  into  three  sections: 
(a)  verses  1-8,  in  which  the  prophet  draws  encouragement 
from  the  example  of  God's  dealings  with  Abraham.  If 
God  could  make  a  people  from  him  who  was  but  one,  all 
the  more  is  he  able  to  restore  a  people  to  greatness  from 
these  who  are  now  in  exile.  (6)  verses  9-11. — It  is  only- 
divine  power  that  can  accomplish  this,  and  so  in  these 
verses  the  people  plead  with  God  to  display  again  the  power 
which  he  had  shown  of  old.  (c)  verses  12-16. — ^They  who 
really  trust  Jehovah  need  have  no  fear. 

51.  I.  hole  of  the  pit.  The  figure  is  that  of  a  quarry. 
The  Israelites  are  the  stones  taken  from  it.  See 
how  wonderful  a  thing  this  is  that  from  such  a  small 
quarry  as  Abraham  and  Sarah  so  many  should  have 
come.  The  figure  of  the  quarry  occurs  nowhere  else. 
4-6.  Israel's  life  as  a  people  is  not  for  herself  only; 
she  is  "for  a  light  of  the  peoples,"  and  the  religion 
thus  sent  forth  is  to  be  universal.  It  is  also  to  be 
eternal,  outlasting  the  heavens  and  the  earth. 
9,  10.  The  imagery  of  these  verses  is  derived  from 
the  Assyrian  and  Babylonian  creation  story,  accord- 
ing to  which  creation  and  the  orderly  Cosmos  could 
only  begin  after  the  god  EUil  or  the  god  Marduk 
had  destroyed  the  great  principle  of  Chaos,  per- 
sonified under  the  name  Tiamat.  This  story  must 
have  been  widely  spread  in  western  Asia,  and  is 
used  for  literary  adornment  especially  by  the  writer 


176 OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

of  the  book  of  Job  (see,  for  example,  3.  8,  9.  13  and 
26.  13),  where  Rahab,  or  Leviathan,  takes  the  place 
of  Tiamat,  and  Jehovah  the  place  of  Ellil,  or  Marduk. 
10.  the  great  deep;  that  is,  the  primeval  chaos  of 
waters  in  Gen.  1.  2.  The  Hebrew  word  is  tehom, 
which  is  etymologically  connected  with  Tiamat. 

a  way  ...  to  pass  over.     This  is  an  allusion  to  the 
crossing  of  the  Red  Sea  in  the  exodus  from  Egypt. 
12-16.  This   is   Jehovah's   reply.     The   people   need 
have  no  fear,  for  the  Almighty  Creator  is  on  their 
side,  and  calls  them  his  people. 


THIRD  SUNDAY  AFTER  EPIPHANY         177 


ALTERNATIVE  X 

HosEA  14.  1-9 

For  a  brief  introduction  to  Hosea's  ministry  see  X, 
Third  Sunday  after  Epiphany,  p.  57.  The  present  lesson 
has  by  some  interpreters  been  denied  to  Hosea,  because 
it  seems  to  contradict  the  severe  judgments  of  chapter  13, 
but  the  reasons  are  quite  insufficient.  It  is  thoroughly 
characteristic  of  the  prophets  to  denounce  sin  and  declare 
judgment,  and  in  the  next  breath  to  promise  mercy  and 
forgiveness.  Verse  9  is,  however,  not  a  part  of  the  prophetic 
message,  but  a  monition  by  a  later  hand  in  the  style  of 
the  Wisdom  Literature,  though  a  quite  useful  conclusion 
in  prose  style  to  Hosea's  poetic  message. 

14.  2.  take  with  you  words.  None  shall  appear  before 
Jehovah  empty — so  ran  the  ancient  requirement 
(Exod.  23.  5,  34.  20).  This  was  interpreted  to  mean 
sacrifices,  but  Hosea  now  suggests  that  men  should 
bring  rather  words,  words  of  repentance  spoken  from 
the  heart,  and  prayers  for  God's  reception  of  them. 
3.  Israel  must  not  look  for  deliverance  to  Assyria 
as  Ahaz  did  when  he  appealed  to  Tiglathpileser  for 
help  against  the  Syro-Ephraimitic  coalition,  nor  to 
Egypt,  from  which  came  horses  for  battle,  but  to 
God  only. 

the  fatherless.  Israel  is  compared  to  an  orphan. 
"I  will  not  leave  you  desolate"  (Lit.,  "orphans"), 
John  14.  18. 

5.  their   backsliding,    that   is,    its   consequences   or 
damages. 

as  the  dew.  The  dry  summer  of  Palestine,  when 
the  land  is  practically  without  rain,  would  dry  up  all 


178  OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

vegetation  but  for  the  heavy  mists  which  blow  in 
from  the  Mediterranean  and  distill  upon  the  land. 

as  the  lily.  Probably  the  gorgeous  Anemone 
coronaria,  which  blooms  in  masses  and  sweeps  of 
color  even  among  the  fields  of  grain. 

as  Lebanon.  A  mountain  has  roots  (Job  28.  9) 
and  is  a  fit  image  for  stability,  as  the  lily  is  for  beauty, 
and  the  olive  also,  with  its  silver  sheen  on  the  under- 
side of  its  dark-green  leaves. 

smell  as  Lebanon.  The  balsamic  odor  of  the 
cedars. 

the  wine  of  Lebanon.  Famous  in  antiquity,  that 
of  Helbon,  in  the  Anti-Lebanon,  being  especially 
praised. 

8.  green  fir  tree.  It  is  at  least  unusual  to  compare 
God  with  a  tree,  though  not  impossible.  The  kind 
of  tree  here  meant  is  quite  unknown. 

fruit  found.  Israel's  fruit  comes  only  by  the 
Lord's  gift. 

9.  This  verse,  as  stated  above,  is  an  addition  to  the 
whole  book  of  Hosea  and  in  the  style  of  the  Wisdom 
Literature.  It  enjoins  upon  men  the  duty  of  giving 
glad  obedience  to  God's  moral  government  of  the 
world. 


SIXTH  SUNDAY  AFTER  EPIPHANY  179 

ALTERNATIVE  XIII 

^ixtli  ^unba?  ^Ittx  Cpipfianp 

MicAH  6.  1-8 

Micah's  prophetic  activity,  according  to  the  superscrip- 
tion of  his  book,  began  about  740,  at  the  beginning  of  the 
reign  of  Jotham,  and  extended  into  the  time  of  Hezekiah. 
He  was,  therefore,  a  contemporary  of  Hosea's  later  days 
and  a  younger  contemporary  of  Isaiah.  The  first  three 
chapters  of  his  book  are  certainly  his,  but  considerable 
doubt  must  be  admitted  in  respect  of  the  rest  of  the  book. 
The  matter  of  authorship  in  the  case  of  this  lesson  is  quite 
unimportant.  It  belongs  in  any  case  to  the  most  deeply 
inspired  of  Hebrew  prophecies. 

6.  I,  2.  In  verse  1  the  prophet  introduces  Jehovah  to 
Israel,  and  then  in  verse  2  Jehovah  speaks,  and  is  ready 
to  argue  his  case  against  Israel  before  the  mountains 
as  judges,  for  they  have  witnessed  the  course  of  Israel's 
history  and  are  acquainted  with  her  attitude  toward 
her  God.  To  the  Scripture,  all  nature,  as  we  call 
these  works  of  God,  shares  with  man  in  his  trials  and 
in  his  joys,  and  besides  that,  shares  God's  feeling 
toward  man  because  of  all  the  evil  that  man  has 
wrought  upon  nature.  Then  nature  obeys  God's  will 
and  executes  God's  judgments  upon  men.  Her  storms 
of  destructive  rain,  her  droughts,  her  earthquakes,  her 
raging  and  overwhelming  seas — all  these  are  fulfilling 
God's  behests  and  punishing  man.  On  the  other 
hand,  they  can  feel  sympathy  for  man,  and  enter 
into  his  emotions.  See  how  the  apostle  Paul  teaches 
this  doctrine  (Rom.  8.  22). 

3.  wherein  have  I  wearied  thee.  At  the  time  of 
this  utterance,  which  may  have  been  in  the  time  of 
Manasseh,  the  sacrificial  system  as  elaborated  during 


180  OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

the  Exile  and  presented  by  Ezra  in  B.  C.  444  was 
not  yet  in  vogue.  The  sacrifices  of  earlier  days  were 
much  more  simple,  and  in  some  cases,  at  least,  were 
not  offered  at  all.  The  classic  passage  in  support 
of  this  view  is  Jer.  7.  22,  but  with  this  there  may  well 
be  compared  also  Isa.  43.  23  and  Amos  5.  25. 

4.  Israel's  history  begins  with  a  great  act  of  redemption 
in  her  deliverance  from  the  Egyptian  bondage,  and 
this  historic  fact  is  ever  prominent  in  her  literature. 

5.  The  reference  to  Balak  and  Balaam  is  an  allusion 
to  the  brilliant  narrative  in  Num.  22-24.  The  prophet 
touches  lightly  upon  it,  presuming  that  all  who  heard 
him  would  be  familiar  with  it. 

6.  Remember  from  Shittim  unto  Gilgal.  Shittim  was 
the  last  camping  station  of  Israel  before  crossing  the 
Jordan  (Josh.  3. 1)  and  Gilgal  the  first  after  crossing  the 
river  (Josh.  4.  20).  It  may,  therefore,  be  presumed  that 
the  meaning  here  intended  is  to  remember  what  hap- 
pened in  God's  providence  between  these  two  points. 
6-8.  A  passage  which  rises  by  a  series  of  rhetorical 
questions  into  a  splendid  climax  in  the  statement  of 
the  character  of  practical  religion  in  verse  8,  which 
belongs  among  the  finest  passages  in  the  Old  Testa- 
ment revelation;  indeed,  some  would  call  it  the  supreme 
prophetic  utterance.  The  present  passage  also  inti- 
mates clearly  enough  what  the  preexilic  prophetic 
message  was  about  sacrifices.  They  are  not  primary 
but  subordinate,  but  they  are  not  disowned  or  repu- 
diated. The  question  was  not  so  much  religious 
ceremonial,  but  the  religious,  or  perhaps  better  the 
ethical  life  of  righteousness  before  God.  On  the 
other  hand,  we  do  well  to  observe  that  God  is  not 
forgotten.  Righteous  living  is  good  and  necessary, 
but  God,  and  man's  relation  to  him,  is  still  the  funda- 
mental requirement. 


FIRST  SUNDAY  IN  LENT  181 


ALTERNATIVE  XVII 

Jf  irtst  £>unbap  in  Eent 

Genesis  18 

The  lesson  is  taken  from  the  part  of  the  Pentateuch 
which  comes  from  the  hand  of  the  Judaistic  writer  (J), 
who  wrote  probably  about  B.  C.  850.  This  writer  has  left 
for  us  much  of  the  most  picturesque  passages  in  the  whole 
Pentateuch,  and  poor  would  we  be  had  they  not  been 
providentially  preserved.  The  loss  of  this  chapter  would 
be  particularly  serious.  Nowhere  else  is  Abraham  por- 
trayed more  attractively.  He  is  here  a  patriarch  indeed, 
quick  in  hospitality,  gentle  and  kindly  in  speech,  grave 
and  serious  in  manner,  dignified  and  courteous,  generous 
in  every  thought.  Well  indeed  might  Israel  be  proud  of 
him. 

i8.  I.  oaks.  It  should  be  "terebinths,"  but  it  would 
appear  pedantic  to  change. 

2.  three  men.  It  is  at  the  hour  of  the  heat  and 
drowsiness  and  Abraham  is  suddenly  aware  of  three 
men  before  him.  The  point  of  the  beautiful  story 
turns  on  the  fact  that  he  does  not  yet  know  who 
they  are,  but  courteously  receives  them  and  makes 
instant  preparation  to  give  such  hospitality  as  cus- 
tom demanded. 

3.  My  lord.  This  is  a  title  of  courtesy  only.  The 
margin  of  R.  V.  reads  "Or,  O  Lord,"  but  this  is 
quite  erroneous,  for  it  would  signify  that  Abraham 
already  recognized  one  of  the  three  as  Jehovah. 

6.  three  measures.  Hebrew,  seahs^  about  four  and 
one  half  pecks  (Kennedy) — a  very  large  amount. 

cakes,  round  and  flat,  and  quickly  baked  upon 
hot  stones. 


182  OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

7.  It  was  a  very  high  compliment  that  Abraham 
offered  his  guests  in  providing  meat  for  them.  Then 
as  now  the  Oriental  has  little  flesh  to  eat  and  seldom 
is  it  provided.  When  it  is  there  is  indeed  a  feast. 
The  "calf  tender  and  good"  would  be  the  mark  of 
a  high  festival. 

8.  butter.  It  was  curdled  milk,  quickly  soured  by 
being  brought  in  from  the  cow,  and  poured  into  a 
"sour-milk  skin,"  and  then  shaken  for  a  few  minutes. 
The  ferment  in  the  skin  from  previous  use  quickly 
ferments  the  milk  and  produces  a  slightly  acid  and 
satisfying  drink,  now  called  leben  among  the  Arabs. 
10.  when  the  season  cometh  round.  A  year  later. 
In  verses  9-15  the  promise  is  made  of  a  son.  It  is 
introduced  with  great  skill,  and  is  deftly  handled. 
The  chief  visitor  who  carries  on  the  conversation 
reveals  a  more  than  human  knowledge,  and  we  have 
therefore  here  the  first  hint  of  the  divine  character. 
16-22.  The  judgment  upon  Sodom  is  revealed  to 
Abraham. 

16.  looked  toward  Sodom.  Sodom  would  not  be 
visible  from  Hebron,  but  would  be  visible  from 
Beni  Na^im,  about  three  miles  east  of  Hebron,  to 
which  spot  Abraham  had  conducted  his  visitors. 

18.  The  blessing  harks  back  to  Gen.  12.  3. 

19.  known  him,  that  is,  "entered  into  personal  rela- 
tions with." 

to  the  end  that.  Abraham  is  to  found  a  family, 
from  which  a  people  shall  spring  through  whom  the 
whole  earth  shall  be  blessed.  But  this  glorious  re- 
sult depends  upon  Abraham's  faithfulness  in  "com- 
manding his  children  and  household  after  him." 

20.  cry  of  Sodom,  that  is,  cry  about  Sodom's  sin 
which  ascends  to  heaven  and  calls  for  judgment. 

22.  Two   of   Abraham's   guests   go   on,   and  one  re- 


FIRST  SUNDAY  IN  LENT  183 

mains.  This  is  Jehovah  himself  made  manifest  in  a 
theophany. 

22-33.  Abraham  intercedes  for  the  city,  because  his 
sense  of  justice  moves  him  to  feel  that  it  would  not 
be  just  to  cause  the  righteous  to  perish  with  the 
wicked.  He  pleads,  therefore,  with  God  to  spare 
the  wicked  for  the  sake  of  the  ten  righteous  and  gains 
at  last  the  great  concession  and  the  Divine  assurance. 
Here  then  was  established  the  doctrine  of  the  justice 
of  God.  God's  mercy  and  his  loving-kindness  come 
to  beautiful  expression  in  the  revelation  to  Moses 
(Exod.  34.  6,  7).  It  was  well  to  have  the  Justice 
made  clear. 

24.  Spare  the  place.  The  Hebrew  means  literally 
"take  away  for  the  place,"  that  is,  take  away  its 
guilt,  so  that  the  thought  is  of  forgiveness. 

25.  that  so  the  righteous  should  be  as  the  wicked. 
This  was  a  very  sore  problem  in  the  religious  thought 
of  Israel  which  comes  to  its  fullest  intensity  in  the 
days  of  Jeremiah  and  Ezekiel,  and  to  its  discussion 
the  book  of  Job  is  devoted. 

the  Judge  of  all  the  earth.  This  is  a  great  claim. 
It  verges  toward  monotheism.  There  may  indeed  be 
other  gods,  that  is  not  explicitly  denied,  but  if  there 
are  Jehovah  is  supreme  judge  over  them. 
33.  And  the  Lord  went  his  way.  How  did  he  go? 
We  are  not  told,  but  are  left  to  surmise  that  he  went 
as  he  came.  He  did  not  disappear  as  in  the  case 
of  the  divine  theophany  before  Gideon  (Judg.  6.  21). 


184  OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 


ALTERNATIVE  XXIV 
€a£(ter  3Bap 

EZEKIEL  37.  1-14 

EzEKiEL,  of  a  distinguished  priestly  family,  and  there- 
fore a  member  of  the  aristocracy  of  Judah,  was  carried 
away  into  captivity  in  597  by  Nebuchadrezzar.     In  Baby- 
lonia he  was  called  to  be  a  prophet  in  593  and  set  himself 
to  comfort  and  establish  his  people  in  the  faith  of  their 
fathers   and   to   awaken   a   sure   conviction   that   Jehovah 
would  restore  them  to  their  own  land.     The  lesson  is  taken 
from  a  chapter  in  which  the  first  part  (verses  1-14)  is  given 
to  the  resurrection  of  the  people  from  national  death  and 
the  promised  return  to  their  own  land,   and  the  second 
part  (verses  15-28)  to  the  promise  of  a  reunion  of  Israel  and 
Judah  under  the  house  of  David.     It  is  not  here  predicted 
that  individuals  are  to  be  raised  from  the  dead.    That 
assurance  came  later  (Isa.  26.  19;  Dan.  12;  compare  Job 
14.  13f .) ;  this  is  only  national  resurrection. 
37.  2.  upon  the  face  of  the  valley.    R.  V.,  "in  the  open 
valley."     The  bones  are  spread  all  over  the  valley 
and  they  were  bleached  and  dry,  fitting  symbol  of 
the  deadness  of  the  nation  and  of  the  hopelessness  of 
its  revival. 

3.  thou  knowest.  It  is  a  modest  answer.  The 
prophet  dare  not  answer  positively,  but  must  leave 
the  decision  to  God.  Even  the  apostle  Paul,  in  the 
larger  light  which  the  Lord  gave,  must  also  speak 
modestly.     (Phil.  3.  11.) 

5.  breath.    The  first  step  is  breath,  yet  that  really 
embraces  the  whole,  for  the  breath  is  the  life. 
7.  shaking.     R.  V.,  "an  earthquake,"  but  that  gives 
a  suggestion  that  is  not  in  the  context.     It  is  not 


EASTER  DAY  185 


the  earth,  but  the  bones  that  shake  (Jewish  version, 
"a  commotion").  The  same  word  is  also  rendered 
"rushing"  (A.  V.,  3.  12).  The  word  "noise"  is  omitted 
by  the  Septuagint. 

9.  unto  the  wind.  In  Hebrew  the  same  word  means 
"wind,"  "breath,"  and  "spirit."  Breath  was  seen 
to  be  wind;  and  as  breath  was  a  visible  expression 
of  life,  it  became  quite  natural  to  use  the  same  word 
for  the  vital  principle  of  life. 

12.  Here  the  figure  varies.  Above  the  bones  are 
lying  in  the  open  valley,  upon  its  face,  but  now  the 
bodies  are  in  their  graves.  It  is,  however,  still  the 
nation  of  which  the  prophet  speaks. 

13.  O  my  people,  not  the  individuals  as  such,  but  the 
nation  as  a  whole. 

14.  This  gift  of  life  is  from  God  only.  It  is  his  spirit 
that  gives  life  (Psa.  104.  30). 

II.  the  whole  house  of  Israel,  that  is,  both  Judah 
and  Ephraim,  and  it  is  the  living  representatives  of 
what  was  once  a  nation,  but  is  now  destroyed,  that 
speak  in  the  next  vords,  saying,  "our  hope  is  lost." 
The  nation  has  been  broken  and  carried  away  into 
captivity,  and  they  who  still  live  personally  can  dis- 
cern no  hope  nationally.  This  is  indeed  a  heart- 
breaking thought  for  them,  and  God  gives  the  prophet 
authority  to  banish  their  fears,  and  renew  their  hopes. 


186  OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 


ALTERNATIVE  XXVII 
^t)ttb  ^unbap  ^fter  €asittv 

Isaiah  60 

The  lesson  belongs  to  the  series  of  postexilic  prophecies 
(56-66)  of  which  the  background  is  Jerusalem  and  not 
Babylon.  The  people  have  returned  from  exile,  but  many 
Jews  are  scattered  in  other  parts  of  the  world,  and  for  their 
ingathering  the  devout  people  of  Jerusalem  are  longing. 
In  this  beautiful  chapter  the  prophet,  whom  we  may  call 
the  Third  Isaiah  for  lack  of  a  better  name,  utters  an  apos- 
trophe to  the  glory  of  the  new  Jerusalem.  The  temple 
had  been  rebuilt  (verses  7  and  13),  but  the  city  walls  are  yet 
to  be  reconstructed  (verse  10)  so  that  the  passage  belongs 
to  the  period  before  Nehemiah. 

2.  darkness.  This  is  darkness  of  the  heathen  world, 
in  contrast  to  the  light  which  shines  upon  Jerusalem  from 
her  Lord. 

4.  carried.  The  Hebrew  means  literally  (see  margin 
R.  V.)  "nursed  on  the  side,"  that  is,  carried  on  the  hip, 
according  to  Oriental  custom. 

5.  tremble,  that  is,  throb  with  joy. 

6.  dromedaries.  Lit.,  young  camels,  probably  under  nine 
years  old. 

Ephah,  a  tribe  of  Midian. 

Sheba,  a  country  and  people  in  Arabia  (Yemen). 

7.  Kedar.  A  general  designation  for  north  Arabian 
nomads,  and  Nebaioth,  probably  the  people  who  later  be- 
came well  known  as  the  Nabateans. 

beautify  my  beautiful  house.    The  temple  has  been 
rebuilt  and  needs  only  to  be  beautified. 


THIRD  SUNDAY  AFTER  EASTER  187 

8.  fly  as  a  cloud.  These  are  the  ships  on  the  Mediter- 
ranean which  will  bring  the  Jews  from  the  West,  and  also 
much  treasure  to  the  restored  Jerusalem. 

12.  The  verse  is  prosaic  and  violates  the  arrangement  of 
the  rest  of  the  beautiful  chapter,  and  has  probably  been 
introduced  from  some  gloss  or  marginal  comment  and  was 
not  written  by  the  prophet.  I  have,  therefore,  omitted  it 
for  the  practical  purpose  of  public  reading. 

13.  the  cypress,  the  pine,  and  the  box  tree.  R.  V.  reads 
for  cypress,  "the  fir  tree,"  but  cypress  is  much  more  likely. 
The  pine  is  doubtful,  and  the  tree  meant  may  be  the  plane 
tree,  and  the  Jewish  version  suggests  "larch"  for  the  third, 
but  this  does  not  seem  likely.  How  were  these  trees  to  be 
used.'^  Were  they  to  be  planted,  or  were  they  to  be  used  as 
lumber  for  practical  use  or  adornment?  The  latter  seems 
more  probable. 

19.  thy  glory,  thy  beauty.  It  is  interesting  to  compare 
Rev.  21.  23  with  this  beautiful  verse.  The  prophet  does 
not  mean  that  the  sun  and  moon  shall  cease  to  exist,  but 
rather  that  supernatural  light  shall  come  with  them,  so  that 
the  city  shall  not  be  dependent  upon  them. 


188  OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 


ALTERNATIVE  XXXI 

Exodus  34.  1-10,  29-35 

This  impressive  and  interesting  passage  is  in  two  parts, 
of  which  the  first  (verses  1-10)  came  from  an  interweaving 
of  the  words  of  the  Judaistic  and  Elohistic  writers  (about 
B.  C.  850  and  800).     The  second  part  (verses  29-35)  was 
set  down  for  us  by  the  Priestly  writer  during  the  Exile 
(about  B.  C.  500). 
34.  I.  Hew  thee  ...  I  will  write.    In  the  former  instance 
(32.  16)  the  tables  themselves  were  God*s  own  handi- 
work and  were  broken  by  Moses  (32.  19),  in  this 
case  the  tables  are  to  be  fashioned  by  Moses  and 
Jehovah  will  write  upon  them. 

6-8.  This  is  the  theophany  promised  in  33.  19-23 
[see  Lesson  XXI]  and  it  is  the  moral  nature  of  Jeho- 
vah that  here  finds  expression. 

7.  It  is  God's  mercy,  and  not  God's  wrath,  that  is 
here  especially  emphasized,  as  it  is  also  in  Exod.  20. 
5,  6.  unto  thousands.  Look  back  at  Exod.  20.  6 
and  the  meaning  will  be  more  clear,  and  yet  more 
clear  if  we  compare  the  Revised  Version  which  reads, 
"showing  mercy  unto  thousands,  of  them  that  love 
me  and  keep  my  commandments."  Note  the  comma 
after  the  word  thousands!  The  meaning  is  in  the 
antithesis.  God's  justice  extends  only  to  the  "third 
and  fourth  generation,"  but  his  mercy  on  the  other 
hand  extends  to  "thousands  belonging  to  them  that 
love  me  and  keep  my  commandments,"  that  is  those 
who  are  descendants  of  those  who  love  God,  or  who 
belong  to  them  in  any  other  way  as  dependents  or 


WHITSUNDAY  189 


even  as  servants.     God's  mercy,  in  other  words,  ex- 
tends much  further  than  his  wrath. 
10.  marvels.    The    marvels    or    wonders    here    pre- 
dicted are  those  described  in  Num.  11,  16,  20,  21,  etc. 

29.  shone.  His  face  shines  because  it  reflects  the 
divine  glory.  The  Hebrew  word  here  translated 
shone  is  a  denominative  from  the  Hebrew  word  kereUy 
"horn,''  in  the  sense  of  ray  (Hab.  3.  4).  Jerome 
translated  it  literally  "was  horned,"  and  hence  the 
sculptors  and  painters  who  read  the  Vulgate  have 
quite  commonly  represented  Moses  with  horns  on 
his  head— so,  for  example,  Michael  Angelo. 

30.  were  afraid.  The  shining  face  frightened  the 
people,  and  thereafter  in  all  ordinary  intercourse 
Moses  wore  a  veil. 

34.  went  in  before  the  Lord.  The  meaning  is  that 
Moses  went  into  the  Tent  of  Meeting  (compare 
Exod.  25.  22  and  Num.  7.  89).  One  should  really 
take  the  time  to  see  how  Paul  makes  use  of  this  in 
2  Cor.  3.  7-18,  and  it  would  be  very  profitable  to 
read  Driver's  admirable  note  upon  Paul's  allegorizing 
(The  Book  of  Exodus,  Camb.  Bible,  pp.  375,  376). 


190  OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 


ALTERNATIVE  XLIV 

Habakkuk  2.  1-14 

Nothing  is  known  of  the  prophet  Habakkuk  save  what 
may  be  gleaned  from  his  book;  even  the  meaning  of  his 
name    is    obscure    and    doubtful.     He    lived    and    worked 
about  the  year  B.  C.  600,  in  the  miserable  days  of  Jehoiakim's 
rule   over   Judah,   and   was   therefore   a   contemporary   of 
Jeremiah.     He  was  deeply  moved  by  the  sins  of  his  people, 
and  argued  that  God  should  punish  them,  and  not  further 
permit  lawlessness  and  social  disorder.     The  complaint  of 
the  prophet  is  expressed  in  the  form  of  a  dialogue  between 
him  and  God  (chap.  1)  and  when  this  is  ended  the  prophet 
sets  himself  upon  a  watchtower,  in  imagination,  to  await 
God's  reply.     It  is  this  reply  which  is  here  chosen  for  a 
lesson. 
2.  I.  tower.    R.   V.,   margin   proposes   "fortress."    The 
actual  place  conceived  was  probably  part  of  the  forti- 
fied city  wall  from  which  one  could  survey  the  dis- 
tance with  the  eye. 

he  will  answer.  This  is  the  reading  of  the  Syriac 
version,  and  seems  much  better  than  the  Hebrew  text, 
which  is  "what  I  shall  answer." 

2.  he  may  run;  that  is,  that  the  reader's  eye  may  run 
swiftly  over  it.  There  must  be  no  indistinctness  in  the 
writing. 

3.  hasteth.  Lit.,  "panteth"  or  "puffeth."  The  vision 
is  personified  and  is  represented  as  running  swiftly 
toward  accomplishment. 

4.  This  is  the  content  of  the  vision  which  the  prophet 
was  to  write  upon  a  tablet,  and  the  meaning  may 
thus  be  paraphrased:    "The  soul  of  the  Chaldean  is 


TWELFTH  SUNDAY  AFTER  TRINITY        191 


puffed  up  with  pride,  but  the  just  shall  live  by  his 
faithfulness." 

faithfulness.  R.  V.,  "faith";  but  there  is  no  word 
for  faith  in  the  Hebrew  language.  The  Hebrew  word 
here  used  means  "steadiness,"  "firmness,"  and  then  as 
a  moral  quality  "faithfulness."  This  clause  is  quoted 
in  the  New  Testament  by  Paul  (Rom.  1.  17,  Gal.  3.  11), 
where  he  renders  "faith,"  making  an  extension  of  the 
meaning  of  the  Septuagint  translation,  and  it  is  used 
again  in  the  same  sense  in  Heb.  10.  37f.  The  New 
Testament  has  simply  spiritualized  the  meaning  and 
given  it  a  significance  beyond  that  originally  meant 
by  Habakkuk. 

In  this,  which  Habakkuk  is  to  write  upon  a  tablet 
and  doubtless  keep  by  him  to  refresh  his  memory, 
and  prevent  his  ever  doubting  God's  moral  govern- 
ment again,  we  have  the  real  kernel  of  Habakkuk*s 
message. 

5.  With  verse  5  begins  a  series  of  woes  directed  against 
the  Chaldeans. 

Yea,  moreover,  wine.  This  makes  absolutely  no 
sense,  and  the  versions  are  helpless  and  hopeless,  nor 
has  any  successful  emendation  been  proposed.  The 
context  shows  clearly  enough  that  the  reference  must 
have  been  to  the  Chaldeans,  and  not  to  wine.  The 
Chaldeans  are  charged  with  restless  ambition.  If  in 
reading  one  dare  substitute  "the  Chaldean"  for  the 
word  "wine,"  he  would  probably  come  near  the  original 
word  of  the  prophet,  and  at  least  make  some  sense, 
but  I  do  not  feel  justified  in  so  printing  the  text  when 
there  is  no  support  either  in  the  Hebrew  or  in  any  of 
the  versions. 

6.  parable,  rather,  a  taunting  song. 

pledges.  The  Chaldean  is  like  a  usurer  who  loads 
himself  with  pledges. 


m OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

shake  thee.    R.  V.,   "vex,"  which  is  not  strong 
enough.     The  meaning  is  harsh.     The  nations   shall 
shake  the  usurious  pledges  out  of  the  Chaldeans. 
Q-ii.     Another  woe  against  the  Chaldeans. 

9.  set  his  nest  on  high,  that  is,  make  himself  secure 
against  possible  enemies,  like  the  vulture  which  builds 
its  nest  in  rocky  clefts  far  out  of  reach. 

10.  devised.  R.  V.,  "consulted."  The  meaning  is 
that  the  Chaldean  planned  or  devised  good  for  himself, 
but  it  has  resulted  only  in  shame.  The  rhetorical 
figure  is  called  oxymoron. 

11.  the  stone  . . .  the  beam.  The  Chaldean  had  stolen 
the  stone  for  his  building  probably  out  of  Arabia,  and 
the  wood  from  the  Lebanon  or  Amanus.  These  are 
now  witnesses  against  him. 

13.  labor  for  the  fire.  Men  toil  to  build  and  the  fire 
consumes  their  structures;  so  will  their  empires  fall 
to  pieces,  and  in  their  place  will  come  Jehovah's  glory 
(verse  14).  This  latter  verse  is  based  upon  Isa.  11.  9, 
but  with  changes  both  in  phraseology  and  in  its  appli- 
cation. 


FOURTEENTH  SUNDAY  AFTER  TRINITY   193 


ALTERNATIVE  XLVI 
Jf  ourteentb  ^unbap  ^fter  ^xinitp 

Amos  5.  4-24 

For  notes  concerning  Amos   and  his   mission  see  XI, 
p.  59.    This  passage  follows  immediately  upon  the  first 
three  verses  of  the  chapter  in  which  the  prophet  sings  a  dirge 
over  Israel,  as  already  fallen,  because  he  has  seen  no  signs  of 
any  amendment.    He  now  follows  this  with  a  stinging  state- 
ment  that  Israel  really  deserves  the  doom  which  he  has 
just  pronounced  because  she  has  relied  on  sacrifices  at  va- 
rious holy  places  rather  than  upon  ethical  amendment. 
5.  4.  seek  ye   me.    The  expression  has   varied   signifi- 
cations, but  here  the  meaning  is  to  seek  God  by  the 
practice  of  a  righteous  life. 

seek  not.    To  go  to  Bethel  or  some  other  place  to 
consult  an  oracle  or  to  offer  sacrifices. 

Bethel.    The  principal  sanctuary  of  the  northern 
Kingdom,  about  ten  miles  north  of  Jerusalem. 

Gilgal.     The  first  camping  place  west  of  the  Jordan, 
and  about  four  and  one  half  miles  from  the  river. 

5.  Beersheba.  In  the  extreme  south,  about  fifty 
miles  below  Jerusalem  and  at  the  very  end  of  the   land. 

In  these  two  verses  Amos  makes  a  very  striking 
series  of  plays  upon  words,  as  he  also  makes  use  of 
assonance,  using  in  the  words  that  follow  "Gilgal" 
Hebrew  words  repeating  the  sound  of  **g.'* 

6.  break  out  like  fire.  Fire  is  here  a  symbol  for  any 
form  of  punishment  that  Jehovah  might  put  upon  a 
recreant  people.  The  punishment  that  actually  came 
was  an  Assyrian  invasion. 

7.  The  words  are  bitter.  Amos  charges  that  instead 
of  maintaining  judgment  they  have  made  it  bitter  and 
have  cast  righteousness  to  earth. 


194  OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

8,  9.  The  verses  are  intended  to  emphasize  the  great- 
ness of  the  God  whom  Israel  insults  by  her  evil  courses. 
The  names  "Pleiades"  and  "Orion"  may  be  correct, 
but  there  is  no  certain  identification. 

10.  they  hate.  These  evil-minded  people  hate  even  the 
magistrates  who  dispense  justice  in  the  gateway. 

11.  These  people  have  despoiled  the  poor.  They  shall 
not  live  comfortably  upon  ill-gotten  gains. 

12.  a  bribe;  that  is,  a  ransom,  or  the  price  of  a  life 
(Exod.  31.  30,  Num.  35.  31).  It  was  expressly  for- 
bidden to  take  a  ransom  and  allow  a  murderer  to 
escape  punishment. 

13.  As  justice  is  in  such  a  plight  it  is  quite  useless  for 
anybody  to  inform  upon  a  wrong-doer,  and  people  who 
are  prudent,  that  is,  worldly  wise,  do  not  take  the 
risk  of  doing  it. 

14.  15.  Amos  renews  his  exhortation  to  good  works. 
There  may  yet  be  a  chance  to  save  a  remnant  if  the 
people  will  but  turn  from  their  evil  ways. 

16,  17.  Amos  feels  sure,  however,  that  the  people 
will  not  heed  his  solicitations,  and  he  therefore  renews 
the  terrible  prediction  that  death  and  destruction 
are  impending,  and  that  there  will  be  more  dead  than 
can  be  buried  with  decent  ceremonies. 
18-20.  Some  men  hope  that  the  Day  of  the  Lord  will 
come  and  save  them,  for,  according  to  their  theology, 
on  that  day  God  will  triumph  over  his  enemies,  whereas 
to  Amos  it  is  a  day  in  which  God's  righteousness  will 
be  vindicated  over  sin.  The  illustrations  used  by  Amos 
to  enforce  the  thought  that  a  man  may  escape  from 
one  evil  only  to  fall  into  another  are  as  brilliant  as 
they  are  pointed. 

21-23.  God  will  not  be  satisfied  with  sacrifices  of  any 
kind.  His  one  and  only  satisfying  demand  is  judg- 
ment and  righteousness  (verse  24). 


EIGHTEENTH  SUNDAY  AFTER  TRINITY    195 

ALTERNATIVE  L 

€isjjteenti)  ^unbap  ^fter  Zxinitv 

Jonah  3.  1 — 4.  11 

The  book  of  Jonah  was  written  by  an  unknown  man, 
richly  endowed  by  nature,  and  yet  more  richly  filled  with 
the  divine  Spirit.  He  was  a  prophet  and  well  deserves  to 
rank  with  the  greatest  of  them  all,  with  Jeremiah  or  with 
the  Second  Isaiah,  Isaiah  of  Babylon.  There  were  strains 
of  pride  and  stains  of  sin  in  the  Judaism  from  which  the 
book  came.  It  was  a  hard  Judaism,  a  stony  soil,  in  many 
ways,  to  bear  a  flower  so  tender,  so  beautiful,  so  catholic 
as  this  dear  book.  It  is  a  neglected  book,  little  esteemed 
among  us,  well  deserving  more  study  than  ever  it  receives, 
appealing  as  it  is  and  winsome.  Yet  it  has  suffered  much 
not  only  at  the  hands  of  those  who  have  spoken  contemptu- 
ously of  it  as  a  "fish  story,"  but  also  by  those  who  made 
great  cause  of  defending  it,  for  they  often  enough  were 
so  deeply  concerned  about  one  verse  in  it  that  they  failed 
to  see  the  real  glory  of  the  book.  As  the  wise  old  divine 
said,  "They  pore  over  the  whale  and  forget  God."  Let 
us  absolutely  neglect  the  great  fish,  and  ask  what  the  book 
really  means.  The  book  of  Jonah  is  not  a  book  containing 
the  prophetic  messages  of  Jonah,  as  are  Amos,  Hosea, 
and  the  others.  It  is,  rather,  a  didactic  book,  written 
about  the  name  and  person  of  the  prophet  Jonah,  who 
lived  in  the  reign  of  Jeroboam  II  (780P-740?)  and  predicted 
the  king's  success  in  war  (2  Kings  14.  25).  There  Jonah  is 
a  distinguished  figure;  in  this  book  he  is  held  up  to  rebuke, 
if  not  to  contempt.  The  book  is  a  symbolical  allegory  in 
which  Jonah  is  a  symbol  of  Israel,  and  the  nation's  history 
and  mental  attitude  are  allegorized  in  a  story  of  extra- 
ordinary events.     If  we  compare  Jer.  51.  34,  44,  we  shall 


196  OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 

see  at  once  that  Babylon  has  swallowed  up  Israel,  and  that 
Jonah  is  Israel,  and  this  makes  clear  enough  what  the 
fish  episode  means. 

The  lessons  of  the  book  grow  out  of  the  words  and  acts 
which  are  told  of  Jonah.  God  would  send  him  on  a  mission 
to  Nineveh,  but  he  will  not  go,  but  runs  away  from  the 
duty,  which  was  also  a  privilege.  The  writer  of  the  book, 
in  the  third  or  fourth  century  before  Christ,  knew  full  well 
that  Israel  had  no  selfish  possession  in  Jehovah,  but  that 
all  the  nations  should  be  blessed  (or  "bless  themselves") 
in  Abraham  (Gen.  12.  3),  and  in  that  knowledge  which 
he  and  his  people  were  to  possess  of  God's  will  and  ways. 
The  story  which  he  tells  of  Jonah's  flight  is  an  abhorrent 
thing  to  him.  But  Jonah  is  pictured  as  comfortably  asleep 
when  God's  vengeance  is  ready  to  overtake  him  (1.  5). 
Marti  has  finely  contrasted  the  sleep  of  Jesus  (Mark  4. 
35-41):  "Jonah  was  tranquil  since  he  thought  he  was  far 
from  God's  hand,  Jesus  confident  since  he  knew  himself 
to  be  hidden  in  God's  hand."  Jonah's  attempt  to  escape 
was  a  failure,  and  at  last  he  goes  unwillingly  to  preach 
repentance  to  the  people  of  Nineveh.  Here  begins  then 
the  noble  and  beautiful  passage. 

3.  2.  three  days'  journey.  The  city  is  so  vast,  in  the 
writer's  eyes,  that  it  would  require  three  days  to  pass 
through  it.  This  is  hyperbole  for  emphasis  and  im- 
pressiveness. 

4-9.  The  effect  of  the  prophet's  preaching  was  mag- 
ical, for  the  whole  immense  city  from  king  to  peasant 
laborer  turns  to  God  in  repentance,  and  the  forgiving 
God  of  Israel  delivers  them  from  the  threatened 
punishment. 

4.  I.  Jonah  is  bitterly  angry  at  God's  mercy  shown  to 
the  heathen  whom  he  despised  or  hated,  either  or 
both.  Jonah's  desire  was  to  see  them  destroyed,  for 
they  did  not  deserve  to  live.     The  spirit  of  the  man 


EIGHTEENTH  SUNDAY  AFTER  TRINITY    197 

is  horrible,  but  there  have  been  too  many  examples 
of  a  similar  desire  among  Christian  theologians  excom- 
municating heretics  and  burning  them  at  the  stake, 
and  consigning  enemies  of  the  truth,  real  or  supposed, 
to  everlasting  torment  for  us  to  cast  stones  at  the 
prophet  as  he  is  here  portrayed. 

2.  Jonah  flings  an  insult  into  God's  face  because  he 
is  gracious  and  compassionate. 

6  and  9.  Jonah  has  a  touch  of  the  humane  spirit, 
for  he  is  angry  at  the  sudden  destruction  of  the  gourd, 
partly,  of  course,  because  it  gave  him  shelter  and  a  bit 
of  comfort,  but  he  felt  "pity"  (verse  10)  for  it  also, 
and  it  is  something  that  he  could  feel  a  touch  of  care 
about  a  plant. 

II.  Now  are  we  come  to  the  climax.  God  is  a  God 
of  pity  and  of  forgiveness.  He  will  pardon  Nineveh 
which  has  repented,  and  he  will  have  pity  because  it 
has  more  than  six  score  thousand  children,  for  it  is 
they  who  are  meant  in  the  phrase,  "that  cannot  dis- 
cern between  their  right  hand  and  their  left  hand." 
The  innocent  children  must  not  suffer  for  the  sins 
of  the  elders.  Then  follows  in  a  veritable  climax, 
"and  also  much  cattle."  God  pities  the  dumb  beasts. 
What  a  God  he  is  indeed!  No  man,  be  he  never  so 
tender  of  heart,  can  approach  him  in  compassion. 
What  a  God  he  is  for  us  in  our  sin  and  folly  and  ig- 
norance and  willfulness!  This  is,  indeed,  a  great 
book,  a  book  of  missionary  spirit  in  deepest  and  truest 
form. 


198  OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 


ALTERNATIVE  LIII 

EZEKIEL   14 

For  notes  on  Ezekiel  and  his  book  see  Alternative  XXIV, 
p.  184.  In  chapter  13  the  prophet  denounced  the  false 
prophets.  He  now  turns  to  declare  that  though  the  false 
prophets  have  misled  the  people,  on  the  other  hand  these 
false  prophets  owe  their  existence  and  the  falsity  of  the 
message  to  the  people  among  whom  they  live  and  work. 
They  are  enticed  from  the  truth  by  a  people  corrupted 
with  idolatry. 

14.  3.  stumbling-block.    The   reference   is   still  to  idol- 
atry.    It  causes  men  to  stumble  and  it  is  iniquity. 

inquired    of;    that    is,    Should    the    real    prophet 
Ezekiel  give  any  answer  to  such  people? 
7.  I  will  answer  him.     The  next  verse  shows  that  the 
divine  answer  will  come  in  the  form  of  a  divine  act. 

9.  The  idea  is  similar  to  that  expressed  in  1  Kings 
22.  20.  If  the  prophet  enters  into  the  spirit  of  the 
people  and  is  enticed  into  speaking  falsely,  it  is  the 
Lord  who  had  brought  this  about  as  a  punishment 
for  the  idolatry  of  the  people. 

10.  Both  people  and  prophets  are  threatened  with 
destruction.  This  statement  would  probably  be  met, 
in  the  people's  minds,  with  the  thought  that  perhaps 
the  prophet  had  said  too  much  and  that  God  would 
save  the  people  because  of  the  righteous  who  were 
among  them.  To  this  possible  argument  the  prophet 
replies  in  verses  12-23,  and  quite  in  the  same  spirit 
as  Jer.  15. 

11.  Yet  are  all  these  severe  judgments  set  for  a  high 


TWENTY-FIRST  SUNDAY  AFTER  TRINITY  199 

moral  end,  for  their  purpose  is  to  save  and  not  to 
destroy.  It  is  intended  that  they  shall  warn  God's 
people  and  bring  them  back  to  him. 
12.  a  land.  A.  V.,  "the  land,"  but  erroneously.  The 
whole  verse  is  a  supposition,  and  applies  to  any  land. 
14.  Jeremiah  had  said,  "Though  Moses  and  Samuel 
stood  before  me,  yet  my  mind  could  not  be  toward 
this  people"  (15.  1).  Now  Ezekiel  uses  three  other 
famous  worthies,  Noah,  Daniel,  and  Job,  to  enforce 
the  same  principle,  that  only  personal  righteousness 
can  deliver  any  individual. 

22.  should  there  be  left.  R.  V.,  "therein  shall  be 
left."  It  is  hypothetical,  not  declarative.  The 
thought  is  that  if  any  escape,  it  is  only  that  they 
may  point  a  moral  and  cause  men  to  be  satisfied, 
who  are  now  in  exile,  when  the  great  fall  of  Jeru- 
salem occurs  in  B.  C.  586. 

comforted  concerning  the  evil.  This  means  the  im- 
pending evil  of  Jerusalem's  destruction  which  was  to 
come  in  586.  They  who  had  been  carried  away  in  597 
were  the  chief  people  of  the  kingdom,  while  those  who 
were  left  behind  were  the  poor,  the  ignorant,  and  very 
probably  the  idolatrous.  They  are  even  compared 
with  bad  figs  that  cannot  be  eaten  (Jer.  24.  8-12, 
29.  16-20).  The  point  which  Ezekiel  is  now  making 
is  that  when  the  earlier  and  nobler  exiles  of  597  see 
these  people  brought  into  captivity,  they  will  be  so 
disgusted  with  them  as  to  be  "comforted"  and  recon- 
ciled to  the  manifestation  of  God's  justice  upon  a 
city  which  had  been  inhabited  by  such  people. 


200  OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 


ALTERNATIVE  LIV 

Nehemiah  8.  1-12 

The  book  of  Nehemiah  was  originally  one  book  with 
Ezra,  and  the  two  were  together  probably  originally  one 
book  with  the  Chronicles,  and  the  whole  not  complete  until 
B.  C.  300,  or  even  later.  The  chronicler  was  a  priest, 
or  at  least  wrote  and  compiled  in  the  priestly  spirit.  The 
book  of  Nehemiah  as  it  now  exists  reveals  Nehemiah  as  a 
person  of  many  engaging  qualities,  though  harsh  at  times 
and  perhaps  not  always  as  wise  as  he  was  severe.  The 
narrative  here  chosen  has  a  public  value  as  an  account 
of  the  feelings  inspired  in  the  people  by  Ezra's  presenta- 
tion of  the  Law  Book. 

8.  I.  the  water  gate.     Probably  on  the  eastern  side  of 
the  city. 

book  of  the  Law  of  Moses.  This  was  the  book 
which  Ezra  brought  from  Babylon  where  it  had  been 
compiled  out  of  ancient  sources  and  traditions  and 
modified  to  suit  the  conditions  then  prevailing. 
Whether  it  was  the  whole  or  only  a  part  of  the  Penta- 
teuch is  still  a  subject  of  learned  dispute.  But  if 
the  whole  was  not  then  in  Ezra's  hand  in  a  completed 
roll,  it  was  surely  completed  within  a  few  years. 

4.  pulpit.     The   Hebrew    means   literally    a    "tower." 
The  context  shows  it  must  have  been  a  raised  platform. 

5.  stood  up — a  sign  of  respect. 

8.  gave   the   sense — explained   the   meaning   of   laws 
so  that  the  people  might  thoroughly  understand. 

9.  Tirshatha.     Probably    an    honorific    title.     Nehe- 
miah's  proper  title  was  pekah,  "governor." 


TWENTY-SECOND  SUNDAY  AFTER  TRINITY  201 


wept.  So  also  when  the  Deuteronomic  Law  was  dis- 
covered, 2  Kings  22.  11,  19.  But  they  were  bidden 
not  to  weep  as  they  heard  the  law,  but  to  rejoice  and 
so  they  did.  God  was  their  Protector  and  Friend, 
and  they  should  rejoice  to  know  and  to  understand 
his  Law. 

10.  eat  the  fat,  and  drink  the  sweet.  The  fatty  por- 
tions of  meat  are  those  most  highly  esteemed  by  the 
modern  as  also  by  the  ancient  Orientals,  and  the 
greatest  compliment  to  a  guest  at  a  feast  is  to  offer 
him  the  meat  with  the  thickest  layer  of  fat.  By  the 
sweet  is  meant  the  new  wine  in  which  fermentation  has 
but  just  begun  or  at  least  has  not  progressed  far  enough 
to  have  broken  down  all  the  grape  sugar  into  alcohol. 

for  whom  nothing  is  prepared.  This  means  the 
poor,  and  the  Septuagint  reads  simply,  "those  who 
have  not,"  which  represents,  perhaps,  a  preferable 
text. 


202  OLD  TESTAMENT  LESSONS 


ALTERNATIVE  LVI 

Haggai  2.  1-9 

The  name  of  the  prophet  Haggai  means  "festal,"  and  he 
may  have  been  so  named  because  of  birth  on  one  of  the 
great  Jewish  feasts.  He  was  a  contemporary  of  Zechariah, 
who  far  excels  him  in  literary  ability  (see  Lesson  XXII). 
Haggai's  religious  message  is  simple:  it  was  merely  an 
urgent  call  to  rebuild  the  Temple,  for  he  saw  quite  plainly 
that  there  could  be  no  development  or  even  continuance 
of  Israel's  religion  without  it.  The  people  had  returned, 
or  at  least  a  part  of  them,  and  that  far  smaller  than  was 
desirable,  in  the  year  536  and  laid  the  foundations  and 
erected  the  altar  of  burnt  sacrifice,  but  did  not  rebuild  the 
Temple.  So  the  matter  rested  for  sixteen  years,  until 
August-September,  520,  when  Haggai  uttered  his  first  call 
for  action.  Then,  on  the  21st  day  of  October-November, 
Haggai  spoke  again  the  words  now  before  us,  and  Zechariah 
followed  with  his  first  message  to  the  same  purpose. 

2.  3.  as  nothing.  There  were  many  discouragements. 
The  Temple  had  lain  in  ruins  for  sixty-six  years,  and 
the  men  who  had  survived  and  could  remember  what 
it  had  been  in  their  youth  could  hardly  feel  other 
than  discouraged  as  they  thought  of  the  attempt 
to  rebuild.  What  could  now  be  done  would  seem 
like  nothing.  From  this  discouragement  Haggai  at- 
tempts to  rouse  them. 

5.  The  first  clause  of  this  verse,  which  reads  in  R.  V. 
''according  to  the  word  that  I  covenanted  with  you 
when  ye  came  out  of  Egypt,"  cannot  be  grammatically 
construed  with   its  context.     It  does  not  appear  in 


TWENTY-FOURTH  SUNDAY  AFTER  TRINITY  203 

the  Septuagint,  and  I  have  left  it  out.  So  Wellhausen, 
Nowack,  G.  A.  Smith,  Marti,  and  Driver. 
6-9.  A  beautiful  Messianic  passage.  Let  not  the 
builders  despair.  The  temple  they  now  build  may  be 
smaller  than  that  of  Solomon,  but  it  will  be  glorified 
by  God,  in  the  days  of  the  ideal  kingdom. 

6.  a  little  while.     The  future  is  foreshortened,  as  was 
commonly  the  case  with  the  prophets. 

7.  desirable  things ;  that  is,  gold  and  silver  and  precious 
gems  brought  to  adorn  the  Temple  by  all  peoples. 
This  is  to  take  place  in  the  Messianic  age.  The  old 
translation,  "the  Desire  of  all  nations,"  which  makes 
it  a  personal  reference  to  the  Messiah,  rests  upon  a 
mistranslation  of  the  Hebrew  in  the  Latin  Vulgate. 
9.  peace.     The  great  hope  of  the  Messianic  age. 


CALENDAR  RUBRICS 


CALENDAR  RUBRICS  207 


CALENDAR  RUBRICS 

The  following  directions  and  tables  are  for  the  use  of 
those  who  may  desire  to  read  the  Scripture  passages  accord- 
ing to  the  Days  of  the  Church  Year.  They  who  would 
prefer  to  read  according  to  any  other  system  may  follow 
the  numbers  and  neglect  these  Calendar  rubrics,  as  has 
already  been  suggested  in  the  Preface.  These  directions 
for  finding  the  day  in  the  Church  Year  have  been  made 
more  elaborate  and  abundant  than  many  are  likely  to  need. 
They  are  intentionally  numerous  and  precise  for  the  help 
of  those  to  whom  the  Church  Year  is  less  familiar  or  even 
strange. 


1.  The  Movable  Festivals  all  depend  upon  Easter  except 
Advent. 

2.  Advent  Sunday ^  called  also  First  Sunday  in  Advent y 
is  always  the  nearest  Sunday  to  the  thirtieth  day  of  No- 
vember, whether  before  or  after.  The  thirtieth  day  of 
November  is  St.  Andrew's  Day. 

3.  Easter  Day,  upon  which  the  rest  depend,  is  always 
the  first  Sunday  after  the  full  moon,  which  happens  upon 
or  next  after  the  twenty -first  day  of  March;  and  if  the 
full  moon  happen  upon  a  Sunday,  Easter  Day  is  the  Sunday 
after.  Note.  The  full  moon  here  meant  is  the  fourteenth 
day  of  a  lunar  month,  reckoned  according  to  an  ancient 
ecclesiastical  computation,  and  not  the  real  or  astro- 
nomical full  moon. 

4.  To  supply  the  dates  of  Easter,  without  need  of  com- 
putation, the  following  table  is  offered. 


208 


CALENDAR  RUBRICS 


II 

A  Table  of  the  Days  on  Which  Easter  Will  Fall  from 
1920  to  1970 


1920 April       4 

1921 March  27 

1922 April     16 

1923 April       1 

1924 April     20 

1925 April     12 

1926 April       4 

1927 April     17 

1928 April       8 

1929 March  31 

1930 April     20 

1931 April       5 

1932 March  27 

1933 April     16 

1934 April       1 

1935 April     21 

1936 April     12 


1937 March  28 

1938 April     17 

1939 April       9 

1940 March  24 

1941 April     13 

1942 April       5 

1943 April     25 

1944 April       9 

1945 April       1 

1946 April     21 

1947 April       6 

1948 March  28 

1949 April     17 

1950 April       9 

1951 March  25 

1952 April     13 

1953 April       5 


1954 April     18 

1955 April     10 

1956 April       1 

1957 April     21 

1958 April       6 

1959 March  29 

1960 April     17 

1961 April       2 

1962 April     22 

1963 April     14 

1964 March  29 

1965 April     18 

1966 April     10 

1967 March  26 

1968 April     14 

1969 April       6 

1970 March  29 


Septuagesima 

Sexagesima 

Quinquagesima 


III 


oa     "^  r  Nine     ) 

>-  Sunday  is  -<    Eight    >- 

ima  J  V.  Seven  ) 


Weeks  before  Easter. 


Ascension-day 
Whitsunday 
Trinity  Sunday 


Forty  Days 
Seven  Weeks 
Eight  Weeks 


after  Easter. 


Ash  Wednesday,  or  the  beginning  of  Lent,  is  forty-six  days  before 

Easter. 
Palm  Sunday,  or  the  beginning  of  Holy  Week,  is  seven  days  before 

Easter. 
Holy  Thursday  is  the  Thursday  before  Easter. 
Good  Friday  is  the  Friday  before  Easter. 


CALENDAR  RUBRICS 


209 


IV 

A   Table  of  the    Movable   Feasts,   According   to   the    Several 
Days  That  Easter  Can  Possibly  Fall  Upon 


EASTER 
DAY 

1. 

If 

If 

1. 

1=^ 

a 

1 

1 
11 

C  0) 

a  > 

CM 

< 

3 
W3 

Mar.  22 

1 

Jan.  18 

Feb.  4 

Apr.  30 

May  10 

27 

Nov.  29 

Mar.  23 

1 

Jan.  19 

Feb.  5 

May  1 

May  11 

27 

Nov.  30 

Mar.  24 

1 

Jan.  20 

Feb.  6 

May  2 

May  12 

27 

Dec.   1 

Mar.  25 

2 

Jan.  21 

Feb.  7 

May  3 

May  13 

27 

Dec.   2 

Mar.  26 

2 

Jan.  22 

Feb.  8 

May  4 

May  14 

27 

Dec.   3 

Mar.  27 

2 

Jan.  23 

Feb.  9 

May  5 

May  15 

26 

Nov.  27 

Mar.  28 

2 

Jan.  24 

Feb.  10 

May  6 

May  16 

26 

Nov.  28 

Mar.  29 

2 

Jan.  25 

Feb.  11 

May  7 

May  17 

26 

Nov.  29 

Mar.  30 

2 

Jan.  26 

Feb.  12 

May  8 

May  18 

26 

Nov.  30 

Mar.  31 

2 

Jan.  27 

Feb.  13 

May  9 

May  19 

26 

Dec.   1 

Apr.  1 

3 

Jan.  28 

Feb.  14 

May  10 

May  20 

26 

Dec.   2 

Apr.  2 

3 

Jan.  29 

Feb.  15 

May  11 

May  21 

26 

Dec.   3 

Apr.  3 

3 

Jan.  30 

Feb.  16 

May  12 

May  22 

25 

Nov.  27 

Apr.  4 

3 

Jan.  31 

Feb.  17 

May  13 

May  23 

25 

Nov.  28 

Apr.  5 

3 

Feb.  1 

Feb.  18 

May  14 

May  24 

25 

Nov.  29 

Apr.  6 

3 

Feb.  2 

Feb.  19 

May  15 

May  25 

25 

Nov.  30 

Apr.  7 

3 

Feb.  3 

Feb.  20 

May  16 

May  26 

25 

Dec.   1 

Apr.  8 

4 

Feb.  4 

Feb.  21 

May  17 

May  27 

25 

Dec.   2 

Apr.  9 

4 

Feb.  5 

Feb.  22 

May  18 

May  28 

25 

Dec.   3 

Apr.  10 

4 

Feb.  6 

Feb.  23 

May  19 

May  29 

24 

Nov.  27 

Apr.  11 

4 

Feb.  7 

Feb.  24 

May  20 

May  30 

24 

Nov.  28 

Apr.  12 

4 

Feb.  8 

Feb.  25 

May  21 

May  31 

24 

Nov.  29 

Apr.  13 

4 

Feb.  9 

Feb.  26 

May  22 

June  1 

24 

Nov.  30 

Apr.  14 

4 

Feb.  10 

Feb.  27 

May  23 

June  2 

24 

Dec.   1 

Apr.  15 

5 

Feb.  11 

Feb.  28 

May  24 

June  3 

24 

Dec.   2 

Apr.  16 

5 

Feb.  12 

Mar.  1 

May  25 

June  4 

24 

Dec.   3 

Apr.  17 

5 

Feb.  13 

Mar.  2 

May  26 

June  5 

23 

Nov.  27 

Apr.  18 

5 

Feb.  14 

Mar.  3 

May  27 

June  6 

23 

Nov.  28 

Apr.  19 

5 

Feb.  15 

Mar.  4 

May  28 

June  7 

23 

Nov.  29 

Apr.  20 

5 

Feb.  16 

Mar.  5 

May  29 

June  8 

23 

Nov.  30 

Apr.  21 

5 

Feb.  17 

Mar.  6 

May  30 

June  9 

23 

Dec.   1 

Apr.  22 

6 

Feb.  18 

Mar.  7 

May  31 

June  10 

23 

Dec.   2 

Apr.  23 

6 

Feb.  19 

Mar.  8 

June  1 

June  11 

23 

Dec.   3 

Apr.  24 

6 

Feb.  20 

Mar.  9 

June  2 

June  12 

22 

Nov.  27 

Apr.  25 

6 

Feb.  21 

Mar.  10 

June  3 

June  13 

22 

Nov.  28 

Note. — In  a  leap  year  the  number  of  Sundays  after  Epiphany  is 
the  same  as  if  Easter  had  fallen  one  day  later  than  it  really  does;  and 
Septuagesima  Sunday  and  Ash  Wednesday  fall  one  day  later  than  that 
given  in  the  Table,  unless  the  Table  gives  some  day  in  March  for 
Ash  Wednesday;  for  in  that  case  the  day  given  by  the  Table  is  the 
right  day. 


210  CALENDAR  RUBRICS 


V. 

To  make  still  more  easy  the  search  for  the  lesson  for  any 
particular  day  in  the  Chm'ch  Calendar  there  is  here  provided 
a  complete  list  of  lessons  for  every  Sunday  for  twenty-one 
years.  If  this  little  Lectionary  should  endure  so  long,  and 
find  a  place  of  usefulness,  it  may  be  hoped  that  another 
Calendar  may  be  prepared  before  this  is  exhausted,  or  that 
any  minister  who  has  used  it  may  by  that  time  be  so  famil- 
iar with  the  Days  of  the  Ecclesiastical  Year  as  not  to  need 
a  Calendar  so  elaborate,  but  be  able  for  himself  to  locate 
the  lesson  for  any  day  by  means  of  the  other  Tables. 

The  Tables  are  here  only  for  those  who  wish  to  use  them. 
The  Scripture  Lesson  is  the  end,  aim,  purpose.  Let  us  read 
the  Old  Testament  in  the  hearing  of  the  people,  by  this 
ancient  system,  or  by  some  other  system,  or  by  no  system 
at  all.  The  means  are  not  important,  if  so  be  that  the  end 
be  accomplished. 


>>  >> 

>>  >> 

>> 

>, 

es 

>> 

>. 

i 

-aw 

>.  a 

It 

Ma 

H 

WW 

1^ 

1. 

at 

1 

"S  a 

1 

1 
■5  « 

2l 

11 

SI 

II 

S13 

1^ 

3^ 

2^ 

CQ.S 

1- 

5^ 

M 
^ 

1920.... 

Jan. 

Jan. 

Jan. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

11 

18 

25 

1 

8 

15 

22 

29 

7 

14 

21 

.  28 

1921.... 

Jan. 

Jan. 

Jan. 

Jan. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

9 

16 

23 

30 

6 

13 

20 

27 

6 

13 

20 

1922.... 

Jan. 

Jan. 

Jan. 

Jan. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

April 

April 

8 

15 

22 

29 

5 

12 

19 

26 

5 

12 

19 

26 

2 

9 

1923.... 

Jan. 

Jan. 

Jan. 

Jan. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

7 

14 

21 

28 

4 

11 

18 

25 

4 

11 

18 

25 

1924.... 

Jan. 

Jan. 

Jan. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

April 

April 

13 

20 

27 

3 

10 

17 

24 

2 

9 

16 

23 

30 

6 

13 

1925. . . . 

Jan. 

Jan. 

Jan. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

April 

11 

18 

25 

1 

8 

15 

22 

1 

8 

15 

22 

29 

5 

1926. . . . 

Jan. 

Jan. 

Jan. 

Jan. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

10 

17 

24 

31 

7 

14 

21 

28 

7 

14 

21 

28 

1927. . . . 

Jan. 

Jan. 

Jan. 

Jan. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

April 

April 

9 

16 

23 

30 

6 



13 

20 

27 

6 

13 

20 

27 

3 

10 

1928. . . . 

Jan. 

Jan. 

Jan. 

Jan. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

April 

8 

15 

22 

29 

5 

12 

19 

26 

4 

11 

18 

25 

1 

1929.... 

Jan. 

Jan. 

Jan. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

13 

20 

27 

3 

10 

17 

24 

3 

10 

17 

24 

1930.... 

Jan. 

Jan. 

Jan. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

April 

AprU 

12 

19 

26 

2 

9 

16 

23 

2 

9 

16 

23 

30 

6 

13 

1931.... 

Jan. 

Jan. 

Jan. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

11 

18 

25 

1 

8 

15 

22 

1 

8 

15 

22 

29 

1932.... 

Jan. 

Jan. 

Jan. 

Jan. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

10 

17 

24 

31 

7 

14 

21 

28 

6 

13 

20 

1933.... 

Jan. 

Jan. 

Jan. 

Jan. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

AprU 

April 

8 

15 

22 

29 

5 

12 

19 

26 

5 

12 

19 

26 

2 

9 

1934.... 

Jan 

Jan, 

Jan. 

Jan. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

7 

14 

21 

28 

4 

11 

18 

25 

' 

11 

18 

25 

1935.... 

Jan 

Jan. 

Jan. 

Feb, 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

April 

April 

13 

20 

27 

3 

10 

17 

24 

3 

10 

17 

24 

31 

7 

14 

1936. . . . 

Jan. 

Jan. 

Jan. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

April 

12 

19 

26 

2 

9 

16 

23 

1 

8 

15 

22 

29 

5 

1937. . . . 

Jan 

Jan 

Jan. 

Jan. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

10 

17 

24 

31 

7 

14 

21 

28 

7 

14 

21 

1938. . . . 

Jan. 

Jan 

Jan. 

Jan. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

April 

AprU 

9 

15 

23 

30 

6 

13 

20 

27 

6 

13 

20 

27 

3 

10 

1939.... 

Jan, 

Jan, 

Jan. 

Jan. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

AprU 

8 

15 

22 

29 

5 

12 

19 

26 

5 

12 

19 

26 

2 

1940.... 

Jan 

Jan 

Jan. 

Jan. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Feb. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

Mar. 

7 

13 

20 

27    1      4 

11 

18 

25 

3 

10     1     17 

211 


1 

1 

4^ 

cow 

h 

jo's 

•13  ^ 

M 

1. 
SI 

M 

il 

I 

1 
•a 

1? 

s 

11 

1.^ 

^"3 

1^ 

M 

1920. . . . 

April 
2 

April 

4 

April 
11 

April 
18 

April 
25 

May 
2 

May 
9 

May 
16 

May 
23 

May 
30 

June 
6 

June 
13 

June 
20 

June 
27 

July 

1921.... 

Mar. 
25 

Mar. 
27 

April 
3 

April 
10 

April 
17 

V 

May 
1 

May 

May 
15 

May 
22 

May 
29 

June 
5 

June 
12 

June 
19 

June 
26 

1922.... 

April 
14 

April 
16 

^f' 

^'" 

May 

May 
14 

May 
21 

May 

28 

June 
4 

June 
11 

June 
18 

June 
25 

July 
2 

July 
9 

July 
16 

1923.... 

Mar. 
30 

April 

1 

April 
8 

April 
15 

X 

Ag" 

May 
6 

May 
13 

May 
20 

May 
27 

June 
3 

June 
10 

June 
17 

June 
24 

July 

1924. . . . 

April 
18 

April 
20 

April 

27 

May 
4 

May 
11 

May 
18 

May 
25 

June 
1 

June 
8 

June 
15 

June 
22 

June 
29 

July 
6 

July 
13 

July 
20 

1925.... 

April 
10 

April 
12 

April 
19 

X 

May 
3 

May 
10 

May 
17 

May 
24 

May 
31 

June 
7 

June 
14 

June 
21 

June 
28 

July 
5 

July 
12 

1926. . . . 

April 
2 

April 
4 

AprU 

April 
18 

r 

May 
2 

May 
9 

May 
16 

May 
23 

May 
30 

June 
6 

June 
13 

June 
20 

June 
27 

July 

1927.... 

April 
15 

April 
17 

.April 

May 

1 

May 

May 
15 

May 
22 

May 
29 

June 
5 

June 
12 

June 
19 

June 
26 

July 
3 

July 
10 

«, 

1928. . . . 

April 
6 

April 
8 

April 
15 

April 
22 

April 
29 

May 
6 

May 
13 

May 
20 

May 

27 

June 
3 

June 
10 

June 
17 

June 
24 

July 

1 

July 

8 

1929. . . . 

Mar. 
29 

Mar. 
31 

April 

April 
14 

April 
21 

V 

May 
5 

May 
12 

May 
19 

May 
26 

June 
2 

June 
9 

June 
16 

June 
23 

June 
30 

1930. . . . 

•t?' 

X' 

April 
27 

May 
4 

May 
11 

May 
18 

May 

June 

1 

June 

8 

June 
15 

June 
22 

June 
29 

July 
6 

July 
13 

July 
20 

1931... 

April 

Y 

April 
12 

April 
19 

Apnl 

May 
3 

May 
10 

May 
17 

May 
24 

May 
31 

June 
7 

June 
14 

June 
21 

June 
28 

July 
5 

1932. . . 

Mar. 
25 

Mar. 
27 

April 
3 

April 

April 
17 

April 
24 

May 

May 
8 

May 
15 

May 
22 

May 
29 

June 
5 

June 
12 

June 
19 

June 
26 

1933. . . . 

April 
14 

April 
16 

Agil 

*s" 

May 

7 

May 
14 

May 
21 

May 
28 

June 
4 

June 
11 

June 
18 

June 
25 

July 
2 

July 
9 

July 
16 

1934.... 

Mar. 
30 

April 

1 

April 
8 

April 
15 

April 
22 

April 

29 

May 
6 

May 
13 

May 
20 

May 

27 

June 
3 

June 
10 

June 
17 

June 
24 

July 

1 

1935.... 

April 
19 

April 
21 

Apnl 

May 
5 

May 
12 

May 
19 

May 
26 

June 
2 

June 
9 

June 
16 

June 
23 

June 
30 

July 
7 

July 
14 

July 
21 

1936. . . . 

April 
10 

April 
12 

April 
19 

April 

May 

May 
10 

May 
17 

May 

24 

May 
31 

June 

7 

June 
14 

June 
21 

June 

28 

July 
5 

July 
12 

1937... 

Mar. 
26 

Mar. 
28 

April 
4 

April 

April 
18 

April 
25 

May 
2 

May 
9 

May 
16 

May 
23 

May 
30 

June 
6 

June 
13 

July 

June 
25 

June 
20 

July 
10 

July 
2 

June 
27 

1938. . . . 

April 
15 

April 
17 

April 

May 

1 

Ma. 

May 
15 

May 
22 

May 
29 

June 
5 

June 
12 

June 
4 

June 
19 

June 
11 

June 
26 

June 
18 

July 
17 

1939.... 

April 
7 

April 
9 

April 
16 

Agi. 

V 

May 
7 

May 
14 

May 
21 

May 

28 

July 
9 

1940. . . . 

Mar. 
22 

Mar. 
24 

May 
.•^1 

April 

7 

April 

14 

April 

April 

r 

May 

12 

May 
19 

May 
26 

June 
2 

June 
9 

June 
16 

June 
23 

2n 


1:1 

1. 

II 

It 

if 

It 
ll 

if 

W3 

1- 
II 

ll 

•a 

IS 

£^3 

1 

ll 

il 

ft 

II 

1 

2*3 

1 

i 

1920. . . . 

July 
11 

July 
18 

July 
25 

Aug. 

1 

Aug. 
8 

^T 

Aug. 
22 

Aug. 
29 

Sept. 

Sept. 

Sept. 
19 

Sept. 
26 

Oct. 
3 

Oct. 
10 

Oct. 
17 

1921.... 

July 
3 

July 
10 

r/ 

July 
24 

July 
31 

Aug. 

Aug. 
14 

Aug. 
21 

Aug. 
28 

Sept. 
4 

Sept. 
11 

Sept. 
18 

Sept. 
25 

Oct. 
2 

Oct. 
9 

1922.... 

July 
23 

July 
30 

A„.. 

^ri- 

^T 

Aug. 
27 

Sept. 

Sept. 
10 

Sept. 

Sept. 
24 

Oct. 
1 

Oct. 
8 

Oct. 
15 

Oct. 

22 

Oct. 
29 

1923.... 

July 

July 
15 

July 
22 

July 
29 

Aug. 
5 

^T 

Aug. 
19 

Aug. 
26 

Sept. 

Sept. 
9 

Sept. 
16 

Sept. 
23 

Sept. 
30 

Oct. 

7 

Oct. 
14 

1924... 

July 
27 

Aug. 
3 

Aug. 
10 

Aug. 
17 

Aug. 
24 

Aug. 
31 

sept. 

Sept. 
14 

Sept. 
21 

Sept. 
28 

Oct. 
5 

Oct. 
12 

Oct. 
19 

Oct. 
26 

Nov. 
2 

1925.... 

July 
19 

July 
26 

r 

Y 

\"|- 

Aug. 
23 

Aug. 
30 

Sept. 
6 

Sept. 
13 

Sept. 
20 

Sep.. 

Oct. 
4 

Oct. 
11 

Oct. 
18 

Oct. 
25 

1926. . .  . 

July 
11 

July 
18 

July 
25 

Aug. 

1 

Aug. 
8 

^"l■ 

Aug. 
22 

Aug. 
29 

Sept. 

Sept. 
12 

Sept. 
19 

"t- 

Oct. 
3 

Oct. 
10 

Oct. 
17 

1927.... 

July 
24 

July 
31 

Aug. 

Aug. 
14 

Aug. 
21 

Aug. 
28 

Sept. 
4 

Sept. 
11 

Sept. 

Sept. 

Oct. 
2 

Oct. 
9 

Oct. 
16 

Oct. 
23 

Oct. 
30 

1928. . . . 

July 
15 

July 
22 

July 
29 

Aug. 
5 

Aug. 
12 

Aug. 
19 

'^■ 

Sept. 

Sept. 

Sept. 
16 

Sep.. 

Sept. 
30 

Oct. 

7 

Oct. 
14 

Oct. 
6 

Oct. 
26 

Oct. 
11 

Oct. 
2 

Oct. 
21 

1929.... 

July 

July 
14 

July 
21 

July 
28 

Aug. 
4 

Aug, 
11 

^T 

^2T 

Sept. 

Sept. 
8 

Sept. 
15 

Sept. 
22 

Sept. 
29 

Oct. 
13 

1930.... 

1? 

Aug. 
3 

M 

Au. 

Aug. 
24 

Aug. 
31 

Sept. 
7 

Sept. 
14 

Sept. 
21 

Sept. 
28 

Oct. 
5 

Oct. 

12 

Oct. 
19 

Nov. 
2 

1931.... 

July 
12 

July 
19 

July 
26 

Aug. 

2 

Aug. 
9 

"iT- 

Aug. 
23 

Aug. 
30 

Sept. 

Sep.. 

Sept. 
20 

S|pt. 

Oct. 
4 

Oct. 
18 

1932.... 

July 
3 

July 
10 

July 
17 

July 
24 

July 
31 

Au. 

Aug. 
14 

Aug. 
21 

Aug. 
28 

Sept. 

Sept. 
11 

Sept. 
18 

"If 

Oct. 
9 

1933.... 

July 
23 

July 
30 

r 

^T 

'^■ 

Aug. 
27 

Sept. 

Sept. 
10 

Sept. 
17 

Sept. 
24 

Oct. 

1 

Oct. 
8 

Oct. 
15 

Sept. 
30 

Oct. 

22 

Oct. 

7 

Oct. 
29 

1934. . . . 

July 
8 

July 
15 

July 

22 

July 
29 

Y 

Aug. 
12 

Aug. 
19 

Aug. 
26 

Sept. 

Sept.r 
9 

Sept. 
16 

Sept. 
23 

Oct. 
14 

1935.... 

^.t 

r 

Aug. 
11 

Aug. 
18 

•\f- 

Sept 

Sept. 

Sept. 
15 

Sept. 
22 

Sept. 
29 

Oct. 
6 

Oct. 
13 

Oct. 
20 

Oct. 
27 

Nov. 
3 

1936.... 

July 
19 

July 
26 

r 

Aug. 
9 

Aug. 
16 

^I- 

•^sT- 

Sept. 
6 

Sept. 
13 

Sept. 
20 

Sept. 
27 

Oct. 
4 

Oct. 
11 

Oct. 
18 

Oct. 
3 

Oct. 
25 

1937... 

July 
4 

July 
11 

July 
18 

July 
25 

■r 

Aug. 
8 

^f■ 

Aug. 
22 

Aug. 
29 

Sept. 
5 

Sept. 
12 

Sept. 
19 

Sept. 
26 

Oct. 
10 

1938... 

July 
24 

July 
31 

Aug. 

Aug 
14 

Aug. 
21 

•\"l 

Sept. 
4 

Sept. 
11 

Sept. 
18 

If 

Oct. 
2 

Oct. 
9 

Oct. 
16 

Oct. 
23 

Oct. 
30 

1939... 

'fi 

July 
23 

July 
30 

Aug 
6 

*if- 

Aug 
20 

'St 

Sept. 

Sept. 
10 

Sept. 
17 

Sept. 
24 

Oct. 

1 

Oct. 
8 

Oct. 
15 

Sept 
29 

Oct. 
22 

1940... 

June 
30 

July 

7 

July 
14 

July 
21 

July 
28 

Aug 
4 

Aug. 
11 

Aug. 
18 

it 

Sept. 

1 

Sept. 
8 

Sept. 
I    15 

Sept. 

22 

.  Oct. 
6 

213 


1 

a 

1 

1 

1 

a 

.S 

S 

^ 

■^  ^ 

-a^ 

CQ 

Mbi 

OT 

^ 

i 

1 

s? 

^ 

n* 

b 

^ 

<s1 

H 

■S]2 

m 

tS'2 

■?-2 

a 

a 

CO 

■^ 

S 

■§?§ 

Is 

1-2 

n 

1,^ 

It 

P 

"ag 
9  > 

CQ.W 

IS -a 

II 

a 
•1 

11 

ll 

H^ 

Hm 

H^ 

Hot 

H  rt 

H  rt 

m<J 

ft,<! 

H<5 

f^< 

O 

PhO 

kO 

1920.... 

Oct. 

Oct. 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dee. 

Jan. 

24 

31 

7 

14 

21 

28 

5 

12 

19 

25 

26 

2, 1921 

1921.... 

Oct. 

Oct. 

Oct. 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Jan. 

16 

23 

30 

6 

13 

20 

27 

4 

11 

18 

25 

1. 1922 

1922.... 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dee. 

5 

12 

19 

26 

3 

10 

17 

24 

25 

31 

1923.... 

Oct. 

Oct. 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Jan. 

21 

28 

4 

11 

18 

25 

2 

9 

16 

23 

25 

30 

6, 1924 

1924. . . . 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Jan. 

9 

16 

23 

30 

7 

14 

21 

25 

28 

4, 1925 

1925.... 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Jan. 

1 

8 

15 

22 

29 

6 

13 

20 

25 

27 

3. 1926 

1926. . . . 

Oct. 

Oct. 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Jan. 

24 

81 

7 

14 

21 

28 

5 

12 

19 

25 

26 

2, 1927 

1927. . . . 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Jan. 

6 

13 

20 

27 

4 

11 

18 

25 

1. 1928 

1928. . . . 

Oct. 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Dee. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Jan. 

28 

4 

11 

18 

25 

2 

9 

16 

23 

25 

30 

6, 1929 

1929. . . . 

Oct. 

Oct. 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Jan. 

20 

27 

3 

10 

17 

24 

8 

15 

22 

25 

29 

5, 1930 

1930.... 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Jan. 

9 

16 

23 

30 

7 

14 

21 

25 

28 

4, 1931 

1931.... 

Oct. 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Jan. 

25 

1 

8 

15 

22 

29 

6 

13 

20 

25 

27 

3, 1932 

1932.... 

Oct. 

Oct. 

Oct. 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Jan. 

16 

23 

30 

6 

13 

20 

27 

4 

11 

18 

25 

1, 1933 

1933... 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

5 

12 

19 

26 

3 

10 

17 

24 

25 

31 

1934... 

Oct. 

Oct. 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Jan. 

21 

28 

4 

11 

18 

25 

2 

9 

16 

23 

25 

30 

6, 1935 

1935.... 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Dee. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Jan. 

10 

17 

24 

1 

8 

15 

22 

25 

29 

5. 1936 

1936... 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Jan. 

1 

8 

15 

22 

29 

6 

13 

20 

25 

27 

3, 1937 

1937... 

Oct. 

Oct. 

Oct. 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Jan. 

17 

24 

31 

7 

14 

21 

28 

5 

12 

19 

25 

26 

2, 1938 

1938.... 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Nov, 

Nov. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dee. 

Jan. 

6 

13 

20 

27 

4 

11 

18 

25 

1, 1939 

1939.... 

Oct. 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

29 

5 

12 

19 

26 

3 

10 

17 

24 

25 

31 

1940.... 

Oct. 

Oct. 

Oct. 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Nov. 

Dec. 

Dec. 

Dee. 

Dec. 

Dee, 

Dec. 

Jan. 

13 

20 

27 

3 

10 

17 

24 

1 

8 

15 

22 

25 

29 

5, 1941 

214 


INDEX  OF  SCRIPTURES 


PAGE 

Genesis  1.  1—2.  3 66 

3 68 

6.  5-8,  13-22;  7.  23,  24; 

9.8-17 71 

18 181 

22.  1-19 75 

37.  3-12,  17-35 77 

Exodus  3.  1-15 79 

12.  1-14.. 89 

16.  2-15 93 

33.  7-23 82 

34.  1-10,  29-35 188 

Deuteronomy  4.  1-20 95 

6.  4-25 97 

8.  2-20 99 

30 101 

Joshua  1.  1-17 107 

Judges  4.  1-16,  23 109 

1  Samuel  1.  1-5,  9-28 112 

3.  1—4.  1 114 

17.  1-4,     8-11,     32-37, 
40-54 115 

2  Samuel  12.  1-23 117 

18.  1-15,  24-33 119 

1  Kings  3.  4-15 123 

6.  1,  38;  8.  12,  13,  22,  23, 

27-40,  54-58 125 

10.  1-13 128 

12 130 

17 132 

18.  1,  2,  17-39 134 

19 136 

2  Kings  5.  1-19 139 

6.  8-23 141 

22.  3-20 142 

1  Chronicles  29.  1-20 121 

Nehemiah  8.  1-12 200 

Job  5.  6-26 157 

28 159 

Proverbs  3.  1-20 151 


PAGE 

Proverbs  8.  1-21 153 

31.  10-31 155 

Ecclesiastes  11.  1-4,  6-10;  12. 

8,  13,  14 161 

Isaiah  1.  1-20 167 

5.  1-20 169 

6.  1-13 105 

7.  10-14;  9.  2-7 46 

10.  33— 11.  9  and  12.  1-6.  43 

25.  1-9 171 

32.  1-5;  35.  1-10 49 

40.  1-17,  27-30 41 

42.  1-16 51 

44.  6-23 53 

51.  1-16 175 

52.  1-12 91 

52.  13—53.  12 86 

55.  1-13 55 

60 186 

Jeremiah  5.  1-6,  15-29 144 

7.  1-15  and  26.  7-16.  .  .  146 

8.  4-22;  9.  1 73 

31.  10-14,  27-34 37 

Ezekiel  14 198 

33.  1-20 62 

34.  1-16,  25-31 64 

37.  1-14 184 

Daniel  5 148 

Hosea  11.  1—12.  6 57 

14.  1-9 , 177 

Joel  2.  21-32 103 

Amos  5.  4-24 193 

8 59 

Jonah  3.  1—4.  11 195 

Micah  4.  1-7;  5.  2-4 39 

6.  1-8 179 

Habakkuk  2.  1-14 190 

Haggai  2.  1-9 202 

Zechariah  2 173 

8.  14-23;  9.  9,  10 84 


215 


